‘Texas Hammer’ Jim Adler, Davis law firm hit by insurers for info in case against San Antonio doctor

The law firms of ubiquitous television pitchmen Jim Adler and Jeff Davis have been subpoenaed for records in a federal civil case that alleges a San Antonio doctor performed unnecessary procedures on patients injured in auto accidents.

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. and State Farm County Mutual Insurance Co. of Texas are seeking all communications between the two personal-injury law firms and Dr. Sanjay Misra pertaining to more than 185 of his purported patients.

The insurers have demanded the law firms turn over the patients’ medical records, bills and “documents reflecting the referral or solicitation of those individuals for healthcare services.”

On Thursday, Jim S. Adler & Associates filed a motion to quash the subpoena related to the records of 70 individuals, saying it’s “overbroad” and subjects it to an “undue burden.”

It argued that the documents sought “generally do not concern” whether Misra’s treatments were medically necessary, but focus on how he billed and the amounts he received.

“These topics do not meaningfully inform whether the treatment was medically necessary in the first place,” the Adler firm said. “Whatever payments JSA (Adler) may have made to (Misra), those payments have only a minimal and attenuated relevance to whether (the insurers’) core allegations in this suit are true.”

Jim Adler bills himself as the “Texas Hammer” and has appeared in television commercials wielding a sledge hammer. The firm has offices in San Antonio, Houston and Dallas.

The Davis Law Firm has not filed anything in the case and didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The subpoena it received seeks records relating to 116 individuals.

A third law firm — San Antonio’s Martinez & Associates — also has been subpoenaed for the records of 46 individuals. It has sought to quash the subpoena on various grounds, including that the materials requested are “irrelevant to the claims and defenses in the case.”

Misra filed a motion to quash all three subpoenas. He wants discovery in the case put on hold until after the court rules on his motion to dismiss the case.

A November court filing shows Misra and the insurance companies agreed to mediate their dispute. They have until March 15 to complete the mediation.

The State Farm companies sued Misra in July in San Antonio federal court alleging that he performed unnecessary and expensive spinal surgeries and procedures on patients injured in auto accidents to inflate the value of their insurance claims.

Misra recommended or performed spinal injections on 300 patients, the suit says. He submitted hundreds of fraudulent bills and supporting documentation to the insurance companies, the complaint adds.

The insurers further allege the bills and documentation “were at the very least a substantial factor in inducing” them to settle bodily injury and uninsured/under-insured motorists claims they otherwise might not have settled.”

The companies say they paid more than $6.5 million to settle the claims. They are seeking restitution, though they don’t know precisely how much Misra received. They suspect the amount is “substantial” based on his $2.5 million in charges for the associated claims. The insurers add they are entitled to more than $1.1 million in damages.

Misra has countered that he and his medical practice are “just the latest targets of State Farm.” The companies, along with other major automobile insurers, “are engaging in a concerted litigation strategy designed to harass, intimidate, and dissuade physicians from treating automobile accident victims who assert claims against those insured by State Farm,” the doctor said in his August motion to dismiss the lawsuit.

State Farm’s claim that Misra’s services were “somehow fraudulent” is “unsubstantiated,” the document added.

In the Adler firm’s motion to quash the subpoena, firm managing partner Michael Gomez said in an attached declaration that conducting global searches for all files mentioning Misra’s name would cause the firm’s database to “hang or crash due to the sheer volume” of files subject to being searched.

“The firm has many thousands of clients who have signed up since 2017 and there is no quick or simple way to search through their files for for keywords or by provider name and retrieve accurate results this way,” Gomez said. pdanner@express-news.net