Bob Bohner specializes in complex commercial, civil and business litigation and alternative dispute resolution. Mr. Bohner takes a proactive role in advising his clients and regularly implements cost-effective strategies designed to accomplish the client’s goals and objectives. He has an extensive practice in all state and federal courts in the State of California.
Mr. Bohner currently devotes his practice to the health care field. He has extensive experience representing providers, health care service and other managed care entities plans, including HMOs, IPAs, MSOs, medical provider networks, MSOs, PPMs and integrated business networks, in complex business litigation. He has substantial experience in health care and business issues pertaining to managed care, ERISA, FEHBA, hospital-physician risk pools, fair procedure issues in hiring and terminating medical providers, utilization review, reimbursement, bad faith, physician billing practices and claims brought against medical groups and HMO plans for alleged negligent medical care, general risk management issues, unfair business practices suits, Medicare, Medicaid, Medi-Cal and compliance with the Health Insurance Portability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).
Mr. Bohner obtained a defense judgment for a behavioral health services provider in an ERISA trial in federal court and successfully defended the judgment on appeal before the United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. That appellate decision, Dupree v. Holman Professional Counseling (9th Cir. 2009) 572 F.3d 1094, found that the behavioral health plan did not cover non-emergent treatment at a non-contracted provider.
Mr. Bohner was recently successful in obtaining trial verdicts in favor of claims administrators and ERISA healthcare plans in two separate eating disorder cases tried in federal court in the Eastern District and Central District, California - Lukas v. United Behavioral Health, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 41368 (E. D. Cal., April 15, 2011); and Pacific Shores Hospital v. United Behavioral Health, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 146866 (C.D. Cal., December 19, 2011).
Mr. Bohner was also part of the Sedgwick trial team which obtained a defense judgment in 2011 after a three week trial for a national provider of industry-leading workers’ compensation products and provider networks, in an action handled in the Complex Division of the Orange County Superior Court. The plaintiff, an orthopedic surgeon who had been terminated from the provider network, sought to recover $3.9 million in economic damages, as well as extra-contractual damages. The court found that the provider network was fully justified in terminating the plaintiff as a network provider because of his persistent refusal to abide by the utilization management obligations required of him as a participating provider.
In addition to health care, Mr. Bohner has extensive experience representing clients in complex business litigation involving bankruptcy matters, insurance bad faith, insurance coverage issues, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, shareholder disputes, fraud, unfair competition, trade secret misappropriation and labor issues concerning wrongful termination of employment.
Memberships & Honors
Mr. Bohner served on the Planning Commission of the City of Manhattan Beach, California from 2005 to 2008, including as its chairman from 2007 to 2008; and on the Parks & Recreation Commission of the City of Manhattan Beach, California from 2003 to 2005.
Publications and Presentations
- Co-author, "Digital Health Liability: We Are Not In Kansas Anymore!" Health Law360 (May 19, 2010).
- "California Appellate Court Holds Denial Of Claim Alone Not Sufficient to Show Emotional Distress," Sedgwick’s Healthcare Law Newsletter (Spring 2009).
- "California Appellate Court: Medical Plan Not Vicariously Liable for Duties Delegated to Another Party," Sedgwick’s Healthcare Law Newsletter (Winter 2009).
- Co-author, “Retroactive Rescission: California Takes a Step Backward,” Health Law360, also appeared in Financial ServicesLaw360 (September 2008)
- Co-author, "Navigating the Shoals of ERISA: The Effect of ERISA Preemption on New State Laws Creating Tort Liability Against Managed Care Entities," The Health Lawyer Journal of The American Bar Association (2002).
- Co-author, "Treatment Options," a Review of the enforceability of New Civil Section 3428, Los Angeles Lawyer (2001).