Federal judge approves $215 million settlement from sex assault accusations against USC gynecologist
LOS ANGELES -- A class-action lawsuit brought by former patients of a USC gynecologist has been settled.
A federal judge approved the $215 million settlement Monday.
This will compensate students who received health services from Dr. George Tyndall, a former campus gynecologist who has been accused by more than 100 women of sexual abuse.
The settlement was reached in collaboration with the plaintiffs' counsel, USC interim president Wanda Austin said in an open letter addressed to the "USC community."
"By doing so, we hope that we can help our community move collectively toward reconciliation," Austin said. "I regret that any student ever felt uncomfortable, unsafe, or mistreated in any way as a result of the actions of a university employee."
According to the statement, each former student who received health services from Tyndall will receive $2,500. Those who are willing to provide further details about their experience may be eligible for up to $250,000 in additional compensation.
The actual payment each of the victims will receive will be decided by a panel made up of a former federal judge, a gynecologist and a psychiatrist.
Nearly 700 women have opted out of this settlement and are instead filing against Tyndall and USC. in state court
He spent about three decades as a USC staff gynecologist before retiring last year after a USC investigation concluded there was evidence he sexually harassed students during physical examinations.
