Duke University in Durham, NC, and the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill have agreed not to hire each other's doctors in an effort to reduce competition and costs, according to a federal lawsuit brought against the two institutions, the Associated Press reported.
An antitrust complaint by former Duke radiologist Dr. Danielle Seaman charges the schools with conspiring to avoid hiring each other's professors. Both UNC and Duke deny making any no-hire agreement that allowed promotions but prevented lateral transfers, the AP story said.
However, Seaman's complaint cites emails referring to the agreement after her own employment "courtship" with UNC's chief of cardiothoracic imaging, Dr. Paul Molina, ended when Molina told Seaman that the two schools had agreed not to permit lateral transfers, according to the AP report.
U.S. District Judge Catherine Eagles will hear arguments on January 4 as to whether Seaman's complaint should include all skilled medical workers employed between 2012 and 2017 at the Duke University School of Medicine, the Duke University Health System, the UNC School of Medicine, and the University of North Carolina Health Care System. Eagles could approve a smaller class instead, limiting the litigation to faculty members and medical doctors.
In addition, the judge is considering a proposed settlement between UNC and Seaman's lawyers, offered in part because UNC could invoke constitutional limits on federal lawsuits against states, and in part because UNC would be required to deliver documents, data, and testimony to support Seaman's efforts to secure monetary damages from Duke, the report said.
Seaman's employment at Duke ended in September 2015, three months after she filed suit, according to the AP.
