Robert Hadden, ex-Columbia University gynecologist, faces hundreds of new sex abuse claims

A former Columbia University gynecologist who was sentenced to 20 years in prison earlier this year for molesting his patients for decades is facing a massive new lawsuit, more than doubling the number of victims claiming in court he sexually abused them.

More than 300 former patients filed new sexual abuse claims in New York State Supreme Court this week against Robert Hadden, the former OB-GYN who was convicted in January of sexually abusing and assaulting numerous patients for roughly 25 years.

Columbia University Irving Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital reached two previous settlements, totaling $236 million, with 231 other Hadden victims in 2021 and 2022. Hadden, 64, hasn’t worked as a doctor since he lost his medical license about a decade ago, when he was first criminally indicted.

The new litigation represents a sizable increase in the number of victims pursuing civil litigation against Hadden. It’s part of a race against the clock by victim advocates, who are staring at a late-November deadline to file civil sexual misconduct suits.

Under the Adult Survivors Act, a so-called lookback window signed by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul last May, the statute of limitations has been waived since November 2022 for sexual abuse victims in New York hoping to pursue civil litigation against their abusers. The one-year window is closing on Nov. 23.

Robert Hadden: Ex-Columbia gynecologist who convicted of sexually abusing dozens of patients faces 20 years in prison

Melissa Hoechstetter, a victim advocate who has been vocal about the abuse she says she experienced from Hadden, said she and other former patients are doing everything they can to make sure others know about the closing window.

“I know in my heart that that number is higher,” she told USA TODAY. “Trauma takes time to process.”

Victims' lawyer: Columbia trying to 'run out the clock'

In September 2020, prosecutors unsealed an indictment accusing Hadden of a half-dozen federal counts of sexual abuse of dozens of female patients dating back to the 90s. They later added two more counts.

“Hadden used his position as a medical doctor at a prominent university … to make or to attempt to make his victims believe that the sexual abuse he inflicted on them was appropriate and medically necessary,” prosecutors wrote at the time.

Hadden was convicted in criminal court earlier this year of inducing four victims to travel to his offices to sexually abuse them. He was sentenced in July.

Charges dating back to the 90s: Ex-New York gynecologist charged in serial sexual assaults on patients

In a statement, Anthony DiPietro, a lawyer representing the victims, said his firm believes Columbia is avoiding notifying former patients of the approaching end to the Adult Survivors Act “in an effort to try and run out the clock.”

“For the past 11 years, my office has been doing everything possible to expose Columbia’s cover-up, not let them get away with it, and make sure that this does not happen to anyone ever again,” DiPietro said.

A spokesperson for Columbia referred USA TODAY to a September statement from the university’s new president, Minouche Shafik, and Katrina Armstrong, the CEO of the medical center. In the statement, which was released after ProPublica and New York Magazine published an investigation into Hadden’s alleged history of abuse, the administrators apologized to the victims. They expressed gratitude the former doctor is behind bars.

“As new leaders at Columbia, we pledge to do everything possible to ensure the safety and welfare of all members of our community, including our patients,” they wrote.

A civil lawyer for Hadden could not immediately be reached for comment.

Zachary Schermele is a breaking news and education reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Robert Hadden, ex-Columbia gynecologist, faces new sex abuse accusations