From Phil Hirschkorn
CNN
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NEW YORK (CNN) -- The estate of rock n' roll legend George Harrison is suing a cancer doctor who treated Harrison in the weeks before he died for allegedly breaching confidentiality and pressuring the ailing former Beatle to sign autographs.
The lawsuit accuses Dr. Gilbert Lederman of "deliberately disclosing confidential and private information" about Harrison both during and after his treatment at Staten Island University Hospital , and in a private home Harrison rented in the fall of 2001.
Lederman has been the director of radiation oncology at the hospital for at least 15 years.
Lederman, through an attorney, called the allegations "meritless."
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, which encompasses Staten Island.
The named plaintiffs are estate executors Kenneth Roberts and Nicholas Valner, from England.
Harrison, 58, is survived by his wife of 23 years, Olivia, and their son, Dhani, after he succumbed to a five-year battle with cancer November 29, 2001, in California.
"Perhaps most egregious, Dr. Lederman preyed upon Mr. Harrison while he was in a greatly deteriorated mental and physical condition by coercing Mr. Harrison to sign a guitar and other autographs," the lawsuit contends.
"Dr. Lederman thereby abused his position as a physician to create a unique collectors' item of enormous value," the suit says.
The suit alleges that two weeks before Harrison's death, Lederman and his children made an uninvited visit to the house Harrison was renting and had his teenage son, Ariel, play an electric guitar for the rock star.
Afterward, Lederman placed the guitar in Harrison's lap and asked him to sign it, the lawsuit alleges, relying on two witnesses.
"I do not even know if I know how to spell my name anymore," a weak Harrison said, according to the suit.
"Come on, you can do this," Lederman replied and held Harrison's hand to help him write his name, according to the suit.
Then the doctor handed Harrison two cards to sign for each of his daughters, the suit says.
"We've been trying to get the doctor to return these materials for a couple of years now and sign a confidentiality agreement," estate attorney Paul LiCalsi said. The family has offered Lederman a new, unsigned guitar to replace the autographed one.
Lederman attorney Wayne Roth said in a written statement that the doctor had a "close personal relationship" with Harrison, who "freely autographed his son's guitar."
In October 2001, after cancer had already spread to his brain, Harrison flew to New York to begin a non-invasive treatment called stereotactic radiosurgery performed by Lederman.
Harrison, his wife, and his head of security all discussed the musician's privacy concerns and obtained a verbal agreement with the doctor to keep Harrison's location and treatment confidential, LiCalsi said.
Written confidentiality agreements were obtained for all nurses and medical staff.
The suit contends that Lederman violated this agreement and medical ethics by granting interviews to news organizations including CNN.
"We don't talk about individuals without their permission," Lederman told a CNN interviewer when asked at the time whether Harrison was his patient.
The lawsuit says Lederman ignored directions from Harrison to deny that the singer was receiving treatment.
"Paparazzi photographers descended on the hospital with offers of $250,000 for a photo of Mr. Harrison," the lawsuit says. "Several reporters and photographers camped out on the street in front of a small hotel where some family members were staying."
The suit also alleges Lederman violated doctor-patient privilege by publicly discussing Harrison's treatment after he died.
LiCalsi said, "The family was extraordinarily upset at the breach of privacy at the time leading up to and after George's death."
The suit demands the return of the signed items and compensatory damages of $10 million.
Roth suggested it be donated to charity to resolve the dispute.
Harrison's estate previously complained about Lederman's behavior to the New York State medical board, which last month reprimanded the doctor and fined him $5,000.
"The physician did not contest the charge of revealing personally identifiable information obtained in a professional capacity without prior consent of the patient," according to the board's Web site for professional misconduct and physician discipline.
Staten Island University Hospital spokeswoman Arlene Ryback said, "The hospital takes patient confidentiality extremely seriously, and our staff are educated to all the regulatory issues surrounding confidentiality."
"This doctor used George to promote himself," LiCalsi said. "He's trying to run up the value of these trophies that he got."
Lederman has no plans to sell the guitar, said Roth, who said an appraiser valued at it at less than $10,000.
Robert Schagrin, owner of Gotta Have It! a Manhattan rock memorabilia store and auction company, said the value of the autographed guitar would depend somewhat on whether it was a model Harrison ever played.
"That guitar under normal circ*mstances -- if George was not ill -- would be worth around five thousand dollars," Schagrin said.
"This particular guitar, because it is conceivably the last guitar ever signed -- could fetch $25,000 or more at an auction."
Guitars actually played by Harrison have sold for much more -- one early career model netted $400,000.
Like all of the former Beatles, who also were successful solo artists, Harrison continued to earn millions of dollars annually.
In the year after his death, royalties from album sales earned Harrison an estimated $16 million, according to Forbes magazine.
CNN researcher Abighail Brigham contributed to this story.
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