01/02/2026
The Sanford Firm Secures $4.4 Million Jury Verdict for Physician Whose Career Was Derailed During Residency
We are honored to share that on Friday, December 19, 2025, a Dallas County jury returned a $4.4 million verdict in favor of our client, Dr. Andrea Avellan, D.O., in her case against Methodist Hospitals of Dallas d/b/a Methodist Health System.
The Case: Dr. Avellan was a third-year internal medicine resident at Methodist when she became pregnant and raised concerns about discriminatory treatment. Despite years of positive evaluations, Methodist withheld the Texas verification and evaluation forms necessary for her to become a licensed physician and prevented her from graduating to complete her specialization as an internist, effectively ending her medical career.
The Verdict: After hearing the evidence, the jury found that Methodist breached its contract with Dr. Avellan and awarded:
$1,400,000 in past lost wages
$3,000,000 in future lost wages
Our Trial Team:
Brian Sanford – Lead Counsel
Elizabeth Sanford
Yusuf Buttar
Tim Otts – Paralegal
We extend our sincere gratitude to our jury consultants: David Wiley, Amy Gibson, Ashley Tremain, Jim Sanford, and Joe Gillespie, whose expertise in jury selection and mock trial preparation proved invaluable!
This verdict sends an important message: when institutions fail to honor their contractual commitments to medical residents, there are consequences. Dr. Avellan gave over 14 years of her life to becoming a physician, and this verdict provides a measure of justice for what was taken from her.
Special thanks to Chris Antone, Karla Connell, and Emma Hoffman for working hard on all of our other cases while we tried this case!
