The University of Southern California has agreed to pay $215 million to settle a federal lawsuit filed by hundreds of women who say that they were sexually abused by the former head gynecologist at the student health center and that school officials did not address their complaints.
The settlement, which still needs to be approved by the court, is among the largest to be reached by a university facing accusations of sexual misconduct. Still, it is unlikely to end the school’s legal battles over the issue: Nearly 500 women have sued U.S.C. claiming mistreatment by the gynecologist, Dr. George Tyndall.
More than 90 of those women came forward for the first time this week, saying that he had molested them as patients. One woman said that when she complained, she was told by officials from the health center, ”We’ll look into it.” But there was no follow-up, she said. One lawyer for the women dismissed the settlement as ”just a public relations effort.”
Under the terms of the tentative settlement, women who were patients of Dr. Tyndall during his three decades at U.S.C. will be eligible for $2,500 payments, whether or not they have alleged abuse. Women who allege the worst abuse and offer additional information will be eligible for up to $20,000, while those who are willing to be screened by a psychologist could receive a maximum of $250,000.
After an internal university investigation concluded that he had acted inappropriately and that his behavior had amounted to sexually harassing patients, Dr. Tyndall reached an agreement with the school and quietly resigned with a payout in 2017. Although the report found that complaints had come in since at least 2000 and it was not clear why he was allowed to stay, U.S.C. officials did not report the findings to the state medical board or any of his former patients.
After a major outcry over the way school officials handled the issue, the president of the university, C.L. Max Nikias, stepped down earlier this year.
The interim president, Wanda Austin, sent a letter announcing the settlement Friday to students, faculty and staff, calling it ”an important step forward” that she hopes it will ”help our community move collectively toward reconciliation.”
”I believe this will go a long way toward the students feeling like they have been heard and I believe get us on a path toward healing,” she said in an interview. ”They are certainly getting the message that we care about the students and we certainly regret this happened.”
But John Manly, who is representing 180 former patients of Dr. Tyndall suing U.S.C., said that the settlement ”does nothing other than sow confusion and deceit.” He said his office received calls from dozens of women on Friday morning, who were confused and concerned.
”Now that has turned to anger,” he said. ”The idea that you go into your doctor’s office at 17 or 18 years old and he brutally sexually assaults you and offends your body and psyche, and that you can then declare victory if you get $2,500, is absurd. But I am not surprised, because sadly what the university cares about is money and public relations. They are mistaken if they think this will go away.”
Mr. Manly said he would continue to pursue the case in state court to demand documents and depositions from university officials. Mr. Manly, who represented women and girls who were abused by Larry Nassar, the sports doctor at Michigan State University, said that the case was not settled until after it was clear what role the administration played.
”We know no more about who knew what at U.S.C. and when than we did 90 days ago,” he said. ”What survivors all want to know is, how this could have happened.”
Money for the settlement will come from reserve funds and the university’s insurance, not tuition or donor money, according to details outlined on a U.S.C. website. The settlement covers all defendants named in the federal class action case: the university and the board of trustees, as well as Dr. Tyndall. All former patients of Dr. Tyndall’s, which U.S.C. estimates to be between 14,000 and 17,000 women, would be eligible for the settlement.
In court documents and in interviews, former patients of Dr. Tyndall’s have accused him of a variety of abusive practices, including invasive and unnecessary pelvic exams, touching their vaginas, asking them to undress in front of him and making sexually explicit remarks about women’s bodies.
He has denied all allegations of harassment and mistreatment.
The state medical board suspended his license to practice in August and the Los Angeles Police Department has said it is investigating possible criminal charges.
In June, the federal Education Department said it was beginning an investigation into how U.S.C. handled the complaints, which it did not disclose during another separate federal investigation over allegations against faculty and staff members, which was concluded in January.
The settlement is the latest multimillion-dollar financial payout from a university facing accusations of sexual misconduct. Michigan State agreed to a $500 million settlement with hundreds of women who say they were sexually assaulted by Dr. Nassar, who worked there for decades.