Stern Cardiovascular Foundation, the Memphis-based cardiology group, has been named in several lawsuits in recent years. The active docket includes a 2025 federal breach-of-contract case the Foundation itself filed against one of its cardiologists, and a 2026 employment discrimination suit brought against it under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Two earlier medical malpractice cases tied to patient deaths reached Tennessee’s appellate courts and produced published rulings. Together, these Stern Cardiovascular lawsuits span contract, employment, and malpractice law.
Stern Cardiovascular Foundation v. Goyal (2025)
On May 8, 2025, Stern Cardiovascular filed a federal lawsuit against Dr. Lalchand T. Goyal, a cardiovascular disease specialist, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee.1PACER Monitor. The Stern Cardiovascular Foundation, Inc v. Goyal The case, The Stern Cardiovascular Foundation, Inc. v. Goyal, Case No. 1:25-cv-01117, is classified as a breach-of-contract action.2Law360. Stern Cardiovascular Foundation v. Goyal Dockets
Dr. Goyal holds a primary practice address in Union City, Tennessee, is board-certified in cardiovascular disease and internal medicine, and carries active licenses in Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, and Pennsylvania.3CMS NPPES NPI Registry. NPI Record for Lalchand T. Goyal Publicly available filings do not spell out the specific factual allegations or the relief the Foundation is seeking; only the contract nature-of-suit classification is on the docket.
By June 2026, Magistrate Judge Jon A. York had denied Dr. Goyal’s motion for a new trial, and a pretrial conference was scheduled for July 24, 2026.1PACER Monitor. The Stern Cardiovascular Foundation, Inc v. Goyal4U.S. District Court, Western District of Tennessee. Judge York Calendar – July 24, 2026 Stern is represented by William Luis Brantley and Christopher S. Campbell; Dr. Goyal is represented by David L. Hargrove.
Penn v. Stern Cardiovascular Foundation (2026)
On June 3, 2026, Julie Penn’s case was removed from the Chancery Court of Shelby County to the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. Filed as Penn v. Stern Cardiovascular Foundation, Case No. 2:26-cv-02633, the suit alleges employment discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act.5PACER Monitor. Penn v. Stern Cardiovascular Foundation
Chief Judge Sheryl H. Lipman is presiding, with Magistrate Judge Annie T. Christoff handling referral matters. Stern Cardiovascular filed its answer and affirmative defenses on June 10, 2026, and a scheduling conference was set for July 24, 2026. The case is on a standard litigation track and subject to mandatory alternative dispute resolution.5PACER Monitor. Penn v. Stern Cardiovascular Foundation The underlying allegations have not been detailed in publicly available filings.
Dial v. Klemis: Carotid Stent Malpractice Claim
Lambert Dial was admitted to Methodist Hospital in July 2017 for a carotid stent procedure performed by Dr. James Klemis, a physician with Stern Cardiovascular. His daughter, Judith Michele Dial, alleged that an air embolus was negligently introduced during the procedure, causing a brain injury. Lambert Dial died on July 26, 2017.6Tennessee Courts. Dial v. Klemis, No. W2019-02115-COA-R3-CV
The case never reached the merits. Tennessee’s Health Care Liability Act requires plaintiffs to serve pre-suit notice that includes HIPAA-compliant medical authorizations allowing each defendant to obtain the patient’s records from every other provider who received notice. The plaintiff conceded that her authorizations only allowed each defendant to access its own records. Dr. Klemis and Stern Cardiovascular moved to dismiss, arguing that the defective authorizations meant she could not claim the 120-day extension to the one-year statute of limitations. The trial court agreed and dismissed with prejudice. In November 2020, the Tennessee Court of Appeals affirmed, rejecting the argument that the error was technical and harmless.6Tennessee Courts. Dial v. Klemis, No. W2019-02115-COA-R3-CV
Shuler v. Garrett: Heparin Injection Case
Pauline Sloan Shuler died in the intensive care unit of Baptist Memorial Hospital-Memphis on June 23, 2011. Her heirs sued multiple defendants, including Stern Ownership Group LLC (doing business as The Stern Cardiovascular Center), Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation, and several individual physicians. The complaint alleged that medical staff administered heparin injections to Shuler despite her known allergy to the drug and her specific refusal of the treatment, and that the injections caused her death.7U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Shuler v. Garrett, No. 12-6270
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee initially dismissed all claims, treating them as medical malpractice and finding the plaintiffs had not met the Tennessee Medical Malpractice Act’s procedural requirements. In February 2014, the Sixth Circuit reversed in part. The appellate court held that the plaintiffs had plausibly alleged medical battery, an intentional tort, because the complaint described a patient who explicitly refused the treatment given. A battery claim based on a complete lack of consent is legally distinct from a malpractice claim about inadequate informed consent, and it does not carry the same pre-suit notice requirements.7U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Shuler v. Garrett, No. 12-6270
2022 Data Security Incident
In September 2022, Stern Cardiovascular disclosed unauthorized access to portions of its IT network. The organization discovered the intrusion on September 13, 2022; the access itself occurred around September 4 through 6. Affected data varied by individual but could include names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, financial account and payment card numbers, insurance information, medical record numbers, and diagnostic and treatment details.8Stern Cardiovascular. Security Incident Notice Individuals whose Social Security numbers were compromised were offered complimentary credit monitoring and identity theft protection. Public notice was issued in November 2022.9Stern Cardiovascular. Security Incident News Update No resulting litigation against Stern Cardiovascular was identified in the available research.
A Related Case Involving the Stern Name
One frequently surfaced case is not a lawsuit against the Foundation. Dr. David M. Stern, who served as Executive Dean and Vice Chancellor at the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center and sat on the Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare board from 2011 to 2017, was a co-relator in a 2017 federal qui tam complaint against Methodist Le Bonheur and The West Clinic.10Local Memphis. Liebman v. Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, Case 3:17-cv-00902
The complaint, filed jointly with former Methodist University Hospital CEO Jeffrey Liebman, alleged that Methodist paid West Clinic physicians more than $400 million in financial inducements between 2012 and 2018 to steer cancer patient referrals to Methodist facilities, in violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark laws. The relators estimated the arrangement generated over $1.5 billion in increased revenues for Methodist and more than $800 million in damages to Medicare and Medicaid. Dr. Stern alleged he was removed from the Methodist board in 2017 after opposing these practices.10Local Memphis. Liebman v. Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, Case 3:17-cv-00902 Court records indicate the case was terminated on January 5, 2024, though the specific outcome is not reflected in publicly available docket information.11CourtListener. Liebman v. Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare Docket Stern Cardiovascular Foundation was not a party to that action.