The American Board of Internal Medicine Takes Formal Action Against Physicians**

The American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) has filed suits against 5 physicians for alleged copyright infringement, the misappropriation of trade secrets, and breach of contract. In addition, ABIM immediately suspended or revoked a total of 139 physicians’ board certification. The ABIM is an organization that certifies internal-medicine specialists and sub-specialists. The organization alleges that the physicians solicited or shared confidential examination questions used to certify doctors in internal medicine and its subspecialties. The Wall Street Journal reported that the law suits stem from participation in Arora Board Review, an independent test review course. Last year, ABIM sued Arora alleging that Arora instructors told class participants that the review questions were from actual certification exams and encouraged them to inform the company of additional questions they remembered after taking the exam.

Our firm represents numerous physicians who have been affected by this unprecedented action. We are in the process of conducting a comprehensive evaluation of their legal rights regarding the suspension of their board certifications and individualized analyses of potential efforts to mitigate any collateral effects.

If you have been adversely affected by this lawsuit and would like assistance in evaluating your legal rights, please contact a Wachler & Associates attorney at 248-544-0888.

**NOTE: Please read the July 7, 2010 update of this post.