Dentist sues patient for $300,000 for bad online review

I'm not sure how I feel about what's going on here. I can see them both being honest about what happened. Maybe I'm just too gullible, but I wouldn't make a good lawyer for sure. I've always thought that <a href="http://www.rosecitydental.com">portland dentists</a> were really good at what they do. But I shouldn't assume. Well, great post! Thank you for keeping us informed!

I just had to comment here because my family and I have been going to Dr. Saleh for years and we have never had any problems or unneccesary procedures.  I think someone just likes to post negative reviews.......

I'm no journalist or reporter, but shouldn't some of the first questions to ask Mr. Bailey be:

1) Did his second opinion find any cavities? (Probably.)

2) 32 years without a cavity is impressive, but was his last dental appointment within the last 6 months? (Probably not.)

3) Did he brush his teeth twice a day and floss once a day as recommended by all dental professionals? (Highly doubtful!)

There is a difference between freedom of speech and slander/liable. Mr. Bailey is obviously too ignorant to know the difference. He should be held responsible for the comments he made about Dr. Saleh. Pronounced “Suh-lay.” If you’re going to verbally assault someone at least have the decency to pronounce their name correctly!

Perhaps Mr. Bailey does have other health issues that need to be considered. Other factors that can cause weakening of the enamel are age, diet, asthma, use of tobacco and/or meth. So until we know the answers to the above questions and the life style, health, and diet of Mr. Bailey, people shouldn’t be so quick to judge Dr. Saleh based on this one man’s naïve opinion.  

I READ THE REVIEW. IT WAS EXTREMELY INAPPROPRIATE! It was posted back in February. Reviews are a tool that we can use to help people learn from our experiences, not a place to verbally vomit hateful and malicious words.

 

I'm pretty sure there is more to the story than the news is telling. Think about it! If I were this guy I would have given more than a poor me speech. I would have taken the time to show any x-rays or pictures or even a report from another dentist with a 2nd opinion. My dentist has to get my consent before starting any work and If this guy was that doubtful why did he get it done? There has got to be more to the story!

 

I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED IN KATU. I look to the news to "inform" me on current events and they were vague and one sided. The story is very quick to make this person a victim. They didn't give any of the facts and it looks like they just took this guys word for everything. It makes me question their professionalism and if they take what they do seriously. If I wanted to get the one sided scoop I would grab a gossip magazine at checkout in the grocery store.

 

People need to be extremely careful before posting negative things about any local business. You need to go back and try to work it out with the business and give them a chance to answer your concerns. Only in some really egregious situations should anyone write negative things, b/c trying to harm someone's reputation undeservedly will only come back on you later. And who needs that?

OTOH, if something really is egregious and the company did a terrible job addressing the concern then negative reviews are fair game. I don't know which it was in this case, but we all need to be much more deliberate and thoughtful before trashing small businesses unjustly. The harm to them and eventually to yourself will not be worth it.

seems like his freedom of speech is being questioned.  dr. mo. saleh if you dont like people's comments than go to a communist country. 

I'd like to comment but I can't afford a lawyer if somebody doesn't like my comment.

Very simple answer here go see a second dentist and see if he really has 10 cavities. If he does the dentist is off the hook , if he doesn't have any cavities then everyone should know that Saleh cann't tell a cavity from a hole in his head.

I read this article, but I really feel like I don't have time for this kind of crap. (:  Sorry.

Drill Baby Drill! That seems to be most dentists mantra.

God forbid somebody warn the people of a crappy dentist.

real simple there should be at least xrays and maybe the intra-oral photos of the cavities, particularly if Dr. S has " a state of the art practice"if not not only is he goin' to loose but there may be some fraud issues. If it isdocumented (cavities) that there's cavities then pay the man scuz mouth

This sort of thing happens more often than people think.  I was going to a dentist for years and everytime I went for a check up he would find cavities.   I just went in for my yearly cleaning and check ups

      After all that, I changed to a "reputable dentist", and guess what, no cavities for many years.  This was  going in for my yearly check ups and cleaning. 

I know in dental school they teach little things to make extra money, but finding this amount of cavities is not something they teach.

  I hope he got a second opinion from another dentist.   If he did the dental licence, can be suspended or revoked.

Also, go to the dental school and find out where he graduated in his class.  Check and see how many times he had to take the exam to practice

Some states like California have easier exams for dentists who can't pass in their own state.  Maybe Oregon is one of them.

I hate dentists.

What an idiot dentist, he's going to lose all his patients if they find out about this. Maybe he will sue me too.

Man bites dog.

I do have a question -- did Mr. Bailey go to another dentist for a second opinion after being told he had  10 cavities?  That would've given him further support in posting the negative review.  I think the better action would be to report the dentist to the ADA and lodge a complaint (after receiving confirmation that he DIDN'T have 10 cavities).

Hey Mr. Selah if you want better reviews do better work.

Soooo - this dentist is suing someone who posted his truthful opinion of this dentist? How does that work, Mr. Dentist, sir. 

 

Who do you shut down freedom of speech or someone simply having the right to critique you? Are all "reviews" about dentists supposed to only and always be positive? 

 

Didn't this dentist ever factor in that someone down the line in all of the years of his uber profitable time as a dental professional would take exception to his business practices? I am incredulous - and so are most dentists, I am certain - that this dentist just thinks he can sue a patient in order to shut down their right to freely speak. 

 

Ah, Mr. Dentist, sir. You gotta be kidding. Really. Taking issues with a singular person's simple freedom of speech - just because you cannot imagine ever, ever, ever being even ever so slightly critically viewed? EVER? Come on...

It was seems sueing someone for their opinion and having THAT be public would do more damage that some little pinner Yelp comment. Maybe the dentist will sue the media for reporting what a d---- he seems to be. 

You had better not actually have 10 cavities or Bailey you are screwed. 

If my dentist sued a patient for stating an opinion of care, I wouldn't go to him no Mo.

Anyone reading this article can't know all the facts in this matter about what actually happen but as a personal opinion after reading this article it sounds like this dentist is full of himself to me.

I listed on Yelp once and told the exact truth about the medical facility I went to and it's billing practices, even sending letters to the medical board, and although I prevailed, Yelp took down my comments claiming that I didn't tell the truth...but then what do you expect from a liberal run company.  As for the 10 cavities, I hope this man had the smarts to go to another dentist to find out if indeed he had 10 cavities.  If he did and the second dentist says that isn't the case then this dentist has opened himself up to being sued himself.

a comment on a blog is no difference than word of mouth. i never never thought of using a blog to choose a dentist as they just aren't trust worthy for truth. there is no way to tell who the commentator is and if that person is telling the truth.

Yelp has a way for the business owner to respond to reviews.  I've seen a few in which the owner said "I'm sorry you had a bad experience.  We've addressed your concerns.  I hope you'll come back so we can make things right".  I've also read one that said, "This is what the customer really did.  She was late.  She changed her mind six times.  She cursed at the staff."  

 

I wonder if the doctor first tried to address it through Yelp first?

I'd never heard of Dr. Mo Saleh. I'd never heard of Optima Dental. But I have now, and because of this lawsuit I'd be afraid to be a patient lest I do something wrong to annoy him. (I don't live in LO, my insurance doesn't cover him, so he's not losing me as a potential patient anyway.)

I suspect Dr. Mo did more to damage his practice and reputation by bringing this lawsuit then the Internet posting of a dissatisfied customer. And apparently he doesn't mind getting lawyered up either.

Excerpted from:http://dentaldynamicsonline.com/about-us#tab-1

 

"About Us

 

About UsDr Mo SalehDr Rima ShaerIn The Media

 

Dr. Mo Saleh’s Dental Practice Portland dentist, Dr. Saleh earned his Doctorate in Dental Medicine from Southern Illinois University’s School of Dental Medicine in 1998. He has since established two state of the art practices; one in Lake Oswego and one in the Pearl District in Portland. These practices focus on implants, sedation and cosmetic dentistry."

 

Translation: He specializes in the big $$$ area of dentistry. Those cleanings, cavities, (eg. small dollar grunt work) are for someone else.

Proving damages in a case like this is difficult.  The doc should have considered the battle won when the review came down.  Suing  a patient looks bad.  With the right to free speech comes responsibilities too; we Americans seem to forget that.

 

Has reporting gotten so bad that the most obvious of questions go unanswered?  Does he have 10 cavities, or not? If a dentist told me I had 10 cavities and i didn't trust him, I'd see what another dentist had to say.

I agree with other commenters that we simply have to know if he has "10 cavities" before we can make an informed decision about the situation. If this guy does have 10 cavities but he blasts the dentist he deserves to be challenged. I, for one, am pretty sick of people who lie just to get a charge out of trying to screw someone else up. I googled the dentist, he (so far) has a stellar reputation. 

Did you get a second opinion?

 

"I set food in his office"?  lol   Appropriate though.

Why is he suing in the first place?  He lives and works in the Lake O area so he obviously doesn't need the money.

Someone better go on Yelp and update to include the fact that this guy is an idiot!!!

As I think I understand the "law", negative reviews are protected as free speech as long as they serve the "public good"; are "factual; and lack "malice".  So relating an honest story about a bad experience is protected, posting a fictitious review because you hate the doctor from high school is not. Unfortunately, not much of this has ever really been ruled on by judges-most suits get settled or tossed out of court.

 

It gets to be a real grey area if you sign a "confidentiality statement", saying you will not publicly disclose details of your treatment or experience. Many professionals routinely add these to new patient packets, but I don't know if their legality has ever been tested. I do know that one was ruled null and void, because the patient was asked to sign it while he was in pain.

 

So until there is enough case law published to define what the law really is, post negative reviews at your own risk.

 

An even more interesting case awaits when a dentist sues his competitor over creating fictional positive reviews of his own business.