Critics decry deal in UCLA doctor case

A state assemblywoman who wrote the law allowing accusers of a UCLA gynecologist more time to sue is advising University of California regents to reject a proposed $ 73- million classaction settlement, saying it will curtail the accusers’ rights.

The proposed settlement was reached last month by attorneys for the UC system and lawyers for seven women who said they were sexually battered by Dr. James Heaps while they were patients at UCLA.

Heaps, 67, has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges that he sexually abused seven patients. More than 200 women accused him in the civil litigation of sexual assault and sexual misconduct from 1983 to 2019, during his tenure at the UCLA student health center and UCLA Medical Center.

Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks ( D- Oakland), in a letter to the UC Board of Regents on Dec. 15, said the settlement was “negotiated in secret without notice or input from the more than 200 women who have f iled suit against UCLA.” Wicks said the deal was designed to undermine the intent of Assembly Bill 3092, which takes effect Jan. 1 and will give survivors until the end of 2021 to file lawsuits. She noted that there could be as many as 6,600 alleged victims.

“The proposed settlement,” she said, “would undermine AB 3092 by dramatically shortening the amount of time a victim may file a case against UCLA and Dr. Heaps.”

The regents’ next meeting is scheduled for Jan. 20.

“Survivors of sexual abuse at UCLA who do not opt out of this class- action settlement will lose their rights to question Dr. Heaps, UCLA administrators and staff under oath,” Wicks said.

Attorney John Manly, who represents 112 alleged victims of Heaps, said his clients would not be part of the settlement, which was crafted by another law f irm. Manly says such a deal denies victims their day in court and is a way for institutions to quickly conclude a scandal without properly compensating victims.

“This is a move to avoid real accountability in a court of law,” Manly said Monday. “I expect the regents will hear from a lot of victims at their next meeting.”