Jane Doe 39 has filed a lawsuit against gynecologist Fabio Ortega and Swedish Covenant Health, in Cook County Circuit Court.
In October 2021, Ortega pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting two female NorthShore patients and was sentenced to three-years in prison. He served one-year and was released on October 28, 2022.
Despite Ortega pleading guilty to sexually assaulting two patients, Chicago-based hospital groups NorthShore and Swedish continue to defend their institutions and Ortega from liability, claiming that their trusting female patients are either confused or lying; or, if the sexual assaults did happen, the hospitals are not responsible for Ortega’s abuses. One woman alleges that Ortega sexually assaulted her at Swedish when she was just 14 years old.
According to numerous lawsuits filed by attorney Tamara Holder, NorthShore knew about Ortega, and yet it continued to allow him to work with unfettered access to female patients. The lawsuits also allege that even after NorthShore became aware of a criminal investigation into Ortega, in early 2017, it continued to allow him to see women behind closed doors and sexually assault them. Further, the lawsuits allege that NorthShore failed to warn its patients that other women had accused Ortega of sexually perverted conduct, and failed to fully investigate its patients’ complaints.
Ms. Holder currently represents 6 female patients against Swedish and 12 female patients against NorthShore. They intend to file at least three more lawsuits in the coming days.
If you have information about Ortega or NorthShore, please call us at 312-440-9000.
The Law Firm of Tamara N. Holder, LLC, is a boutique practice founded in 2005 by Chicago-based attorney Tamara Holder. The firm is focused on cases that address institutional abuse, from sexual harassment and racial discrimination in the workplace to sexual assault and abuse. For more information, visit tamaraholder.com
