The Caprock Cardiovascular lawsuit activity out of Lubbock, Texas involves two separate matters. In the first, co-owner and interventional cardiologist Dr. Juan Kurdi agreed in August 2025 to pay $1.2 million to the U.S. Department of Justice to resolve allegations that he wrote fraudulent controlled-substance prescriptions for his own personal use, and he surrendered his DEA registration as part of the deal.1U.S. Department of Justice. Lubbock Cardiologist Agrees to Pay $1.2 Million to Resolve Alleged Controlled Substance Act Violations In the second, the practice itself is the plaintiff in a breach-of-contract case against a former physician, Dr. Aurelio R. Cervera, filed in January 2024.2Trellis Law. Caprock Cardiovascular Center LLP v. Aurelio R Cervera MD, Gabriela Cervera
What Kurdi Was Accused Of
The DEA’s Fort Worth Diversion Squad investigated Kurdi for writing prescriptions in the names of family members and friends he was not treating. According to the government, he did so without establishing a physician-patient relationship, without physical examinations, and without medical records supporting the prescriptions. He then picked up many of the medications himself at Lubbock-area pharmacies. Some of the people whose names appeared on the prescriptions lived hundreds or thousands of miles from Lubbock.3Becker’s ASC Review. Texas Cardiologist to Pay $1.2M to Resolve Controlled Substances Allegations
The drugs at issue included oxycodone, alprazolam, tramadol, dextroamphetamine, and Vyvanse.1U.S. Department of Justice. Lubbock Cardiologist Agrees to Pay $1.2 Million to Resolve Alleged Controlled Substance Act Violations Acting U.S. Attorney Nancy E. Larson said that “prescribing opioids and other dangerous narcotics outside the usual course of professional practice betrays the trust placed in physicians by society and threatens public safety.”4Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Lubbock Cardiologist Kurdi Agrees to $1.2 Million Settlement With DOJ
Terms of the $1.2 Million Settlement
The DOJ announced the settlement on August 8, 2025. It required Kurdi to pay $1.2 million and to voluntarily give up his DEA registration, which stops him from prescribing controlled substances. The agreement states it is not an admission of liability, but Kurdi publicly acknowledged issuing prescriptions in the names of family members and friends to obtain controlled substances, including oxycodone, for his own use.1U.S. Department of Justice. Lubbock Cardiologist Agrees to Pay $1.2 Million to Resolve Alleged Controlled Substance Act Violations
The case was handled civilly. As of the settlement date, no criminal charges had been filed against Kurdi.4Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Lubbock Cardiologist Kurdi Agrees to $1.2 Million Settlement With DOJ
The Earlier Texas Medical Board Reprimand
The federal settlement was not the first action against Kurdi. In December 2023, the Texas Medical Board entered an agreed order publicly reprimanding him after finding he had diverted controlled substances and written false prescriptions for his own personal use. Caprock had already suspended him after discovering the conduct.5KCBD. Lubbock Heart Doctor Reprimanded by Texas Medical Board, Accused of Writing False Prescriptions
The Board’s order barred Kurdi from possessing, administering, distributing, or prescribing controlled substances in Texas; prohibited him from treating immediate family or prescribing addictive drugs to himself or relatives; put his practice under another physician’s monitoring for eight cycles; ended his ability to delegate prescriptive authority to physician assistants or advanced practice nurses; required 20 hours of continuing education in recordkeeping, risk management, and ethics plus passage of the Medical Jurisprudence Exam within a year; and referred him to the Texas Physician Health Program. The Board did not suspend or revoke his medical license.6Texas Medical Board. TMB Disciplines 18 Physicians at December Meeting As of August 2025, his license remained active, though whether he is still seeing patients is unclear given the loss of his DEA registration and the earlier restrictions.4Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Lubbock Cardiologist Kurdi Agrees to $1.2 Million Settlement With DOJ
Caprock’s Breach-of-Contract Case Against Dr. Cervera
The practice’s own lawsuit is unrelated to the prescription matter. Caprock Cardiovascular Center filed suit on January 26, 2024 in Lubbock County District Court against Dr. Aurelio R. Cervera and Gabriela Cervera, with Judge Benjamin A. Webb presiding. The court granted a temporary restraining order on February 6, 2024, days after filing, indicating the practice sought immediate relief. The publicly available docket does not disclose the dollar amount at stake, the specific contract provisions in dispute, the terms of the restraining order, or Gabriela Cervera’s role in the underlying facts. The case remained active as of the last docket update in August 2024.2Trellis Law. Caprock Cardiovascular Center LLP v. Aurelio R Cervera MD, Gabriela Cervera
The Practice at the Center of Both Cases
Caprock Cardiovascular Center is a cardiology group organized as a limited liability partnership in Lubbock, offering interventional cardiology, nuclear medicine, stress testing, cardiac catheterization, and related services.7Lubbock Chamber of Commerce. Caprock Cardiovascular Center LLP Kurdi co-owned and co-operated the practice. Other providers listed there include Dr. Jason Bradley, Dr. Colbert Perez, nurse practitioner Maria Cortez, and physician assistant Kaye McLain.8Healthgrades. Caprock Cardiovascular Center LLP