The Dr. Hyder lawsuits fall into three distinct groups: medical malpractice cases filed by former patients against the Indiana spine surgeon, a discovery action Dr. Zeshan Hyder himself brought in Illinois against three former colleagues he accuses of orchestrating those malpractice filings, and a federal kickback investigation into spinal implant maker Life Spine, Inc. that involved payments to Dr. Hyder without naming him as a defendant.
Who Dr. Hyder Is
Dr. Zeshan Hyder is an osteopathic spine surgeon based in Crown Point, Indiana. He earned his D.O. from Midwestern University and became board certified in spine surgery in 2013. From September 2011 through October 2019 he practiced at Bone & Joint Specialists, P.C. alongside Dr. Kenneth J. Ham, Dr. James Hong, and Dr. Scott A. Andrews. In October 2019 he left the group and incorporated NWI Spine Institute (formally Spine Hyder, P.C.), which he still operates.1Illinois Courts. Hyder v. Ham, 2023 IL App (1st) 221658 He holds active medical licenses in Indiana, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, and Texas.2NeuroSpine Plus Florida. Dr. Zeshan Hyder
The Malpractice Claims Against Him
The volume of malpractice claims is the most conspicuous feature of Dr. Hyder’s legal record. Across his eight years at Bone & Joint Specialists, seven malpractice claims were filed against him, all naming the practice as a co-party. None produced a finding of liability. In the roughly three years after he left the group, 21 additional claims were filed against him and NWI Spine. As of the 2023 appellate record, none of those had resulted in liability either.1Illinois Courts. Hyder v. Ham, 2023 IL App (1st) 221658
The case that came closest to putting the surgeon’s practices on public trial was Kittleson v. Hyder. Walter Kittleson, 80 at the time of his treatment, alleged that Dr. Hyder performed an unnecessary multi-level spine fusion on him in February 2018, failed to obtain informed consent, and was motivated by a financial conflict of interest as a paid consultant and representative for Life Spine, Inc., whose hardware was used in the surgery. A three-physician medical review panel found a “material issue of fact” on the indications for surgery without reaching a definitive conclusion. On January 28, 2026, a Lake Superior Court jury returned a defense verdict for Dr. Hyder on liability, and no damages were awarded.3Indiana Jury Verdict Reporter. Kittleson v. Hyder, Case No. 45D11-2302-CT-131
Another patient, Vernon Fitzwater, sued Broadway Methodist Hospital and several physicians including Dr. Hyder in January 2019 over 2016 treatment for spinal stenosis. At the December 2024 jury trial, the court granted judgment on the evidence for the defendants. The Court of Appeals of Indiana affirmed on July 11, 2025.4Indiana Courts. Fitzwater v. Broadway Methodist Hospital, 24A-CT-3162
At least one malpractice case remains open. Patricia Ware filed a medical negligence suit against Dr. Hyder and NWI Spine Institute in Lake County, Indiana, in November 2024 under the Indiana Medical Malpractice Act. As of mid-2026, no resolution had been reported.5Trellis Law. Patricia Ware v. Zeshan Hyder, Spine Hyder, P.C. d/b/a NWI Spine Institute
His Lawsuit Against His Former Colleagues
In July 2022, Dr. Hyder and NWI Spine filed a petition for discovery in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, under Illinois Supreme Court Rule 224. The petition named his three former Bone & Joint colleagues, Dr. Ham, Dr. Hong, and Dr. Andrews, and alleged they might have information identifying unknown individuals responsible for what Dr. Hyder called a “calculated attack” behind the surge in malpractice filings. He asserted that some of those claims contained confidential information about his departure that only his former colleagues would have known. The petition targeted possible claims for unfair competition (including under the federal Lanham Act), false light invasion of privacy, tortious interference with business relationships, and unauthorized disclosure of information.
Judge Mary Colleen Roberts dismissed the petition with prejudice in October 2022, ruling that Dr. Hyder was seeking substantive discovery rather than the identity of unknown defendants. On September 29, 2023, the Illinois Appellate Court reversed, finding the petition was not legally insufficient on its face, and remanded for further proceedings.1Illinois Courts. Hyder v. Ham, 2023 IL App (1st) 221658
His Ties to the Life Spine Kickback Case
Federal payment disclosure records show that in 2018 alone, Dr. Hyder received $932,262 from medical device companies, with roughly $917,000 of that coming from Life Spine, Inc. as royalty or license payments and smaller amounts for consulting, travel, and meals. Providence Medical Technology also paid him that year.6ProPublica. Dr. Zeshan M. Hyder Industry Payments
In July 2019, the Manhattan U.S. Attorney filed a civil healthcare fraud lawsuit against Life Spine, its CEO Michael Butler, and its VP of business development Richard Greiber, alleging violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute through payments to surgeons disguised as consulting fees, royalties, and intellectual property acquisitions.7HHS Office of Inspector General. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Files Lawsuit Against Spinal Implant Company The government said surgeons receiving those payments accounted for roughly half of Life Spine’s domestic sales between 2012 and 2018. Life Spine settled with the DOJ in late 2019 for $5.5 million, with the total resolution reaching about $6 million after forfeiture of certain insurance payments. As part of the settlement, Life Spine admitted it tracked “return on investment” on surgeon-consultant payments and contacted surgeons whose usage of its products declined.8MedTech Dive. Life Spine Execs Settle Implants Kickback Case for Nearly $6M
Dr. Hyder was not named as a defendant in the federal action, and the available record does not indicate any federal charges or civil enforcement action against him personally in connection with the investigation. The Life Spine relationship did, however, become part of the plaintiff’s theory in the Kittleson case, offered as evidence of a conflict of interest driving surgical recommendations. The jury sided with Dr. Hyder.3Indiana Jury Verdict Reporter. Kittleson v. Hyder, Case No. 45D11-2302-CT-131