A lawyer has settled his lawsuit against Elevance Health Inc. — formerly known as Anthem Inc. — in which he alleged he was wrongfully fired in 2021 for refusing to disclose to management confidential communications he had with a work colleague in violation of his ethical duties as an attorney.
Gregory Antoniono’s Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit also alleged retaliation and violations of the Labor and Business and Professions Codes. Anthem changed its name to Elevance Health in June 2021.
In their court papers, Elevance lawyers had argued that Antoniono agreed to arbitrate all disputes related to employment and they filed a motion to compel the procedure. However, Judge Holly J. Fujie denied the arbitration motion and her ruling was upheld by a three-justice panel of the Second District Court of Appeal.
On Nov. 3, Elevance attorneys filed court papers with Fujie notifying her that the case was settled, but no terms were divulged.
According to the suit, Antoniono, 62, of Thousand Oaks was licensed to practice law in California in 1993, before he was hired by the insurer. In his job as director of strategic sourcing and procurement, Antoniono did not do legal work, but he was entrusted with a $650 million annual budget, led a large team and oversaw negotiations with and management of all vendors in support of the insurer’s marketing, according to the suit filed in August 2022.
Many of the plaintiff’s colleagues, including members of upper management, knew he was an attorney and asked for his legal advice on personal matters, the suit stated. Although they sought the information on a friendly basis, their communications with Antoniono were nonetheless protected by the attorney-client privilege and Antoniono’s ethical duty of confidentiality, the suit stated.
A female colleague sought legal counseling from Antoniono in April 2021, the suit stated. The suit does not state what the plaintiff and his co-worker talked about, but does say she later “apparently” made allegations of sexual harassment against a high-level executive to whom Antoniono, in 2008, had provided legal advice, along with the executive’s friends and family.
“Thereafter, (the insurer) attempted to coerce Mr. Antoniono into divulging the substance of his prior communications with (the female colleague) despite knowing that, as an attorney, he was legally prohibited from doing so,” the suit stated.
Revealing the contents of the conversation would likely have subjected the plaintiff to disbarment and other civil and disciplinary penalties, according to the suit. After careful review of the relevant legal authorities, Antoniono concluded that, without the consent of the colleague, it would have been unlawful for him to reveal any of the privileged information she shared with him, the suit stated.
“Nonetheless, the message was clear: either violate the law and your ethical obligations or lose your job,” the suit stated. “When Mr. Antoniono refused to break the law, he was fired in retaliation.”
Management confirmed that when Antoniono was fired in September 2021 he was losing his job for his refusal to talk about his communications with the female colleague, according to the suit. The plaintiff maintained he was legally and ethically prohibited from disclosing the information.