Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP Secures $5.8 Million Whistleblower Retaliation Verdict Against UC Regents

Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP has secured a $5.8 million jury verdict on behalf of a UC Irvine neurosurgeon and professor who was subjected to years of whistleblower retaliation by the University of California Regents.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif., June 23, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Trial lawyers at Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP have secured a $5.8 million verdict for Dr. Mark Linskey, a board-certified neurosurgeon and tenured professor at UC Irvine, in a whistleblower retaliation case against the University of California Regents. The verdict, delivered by an Orange County jury on May 9, 2025, follows a prior $2 million judgment obtained by the firm in 2019 for similar acts of retaliation.

As court records show, Attorneys Mark Quigley and Ivan Puchalt of Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP led the high-stakes litigation, which spanned more than a decade of alleged retaliation after Dr. Linskey raised concerns about patient safety, administrative abuse of power, and systemic failures at the university's medical center.

"This time around, the focus was really on the failure to reinstate Dr. Linskey to the residency program despite a prior court order," said Ivan Puchalt. "The evidence showed that UC Irvine repeatedly failed to comply with that order and continued to sideline a respected physician and educator."

The jury found that UC Irvine's leadership retaliated against Dr. Linskey from 2015 through the present, ultimately denying him core responsibilities such as teaching residents and participating in the neurosurgical on-call rotation. These retaliatory acts persisted even after the prior jury verdict and court mandate.

"This verdict reinforces that whistleblowers who speak out about patient safety and institutional misconduct must be protected, not punished," said Mark Quigley, partner at Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP. "We're proud to have stood by Dr. Linskey in both trials and to hold the university accountable for its ongoing unlawful conduct."

The jury awarded Dr. Linskey compensation for past and future economic losses as well as non-economic damages, including emotional distress, mental suffering, and reputational harm.

Dr. Linskey, who first joined UC Irvine in 2004 and served as Chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery, has faced an extended pattern of retaliation since filing internal complaints in 2014. Those grievances detailed inappropriate patient handling, economic pressures compromising care quality, and alleged efforts by university officials to retaliate when concerns were raised.

"Having two sequential, unanimous jury verdicts is a very good feeling," Dr. Linskey told The Los Angeles Times. "It's vindication that good, honest people on a jury can see through to the truth and that our system works."

Quigley and Puchalt expect the defense to pursue post-trial motions or appeal, but they remain confident in the strength of the case. "The jury sent a strong message that retaliation—especially in an academic medical setting—will not be tolerated," added Quigley.

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SOURCE Greene Broillet & Wheeler, LLP