Doctor Who Had Affair With Patient Must Pay Her $3.2M

A neurologist who admitted having a sexual affair with a female patient while he treated her for a brain injury has been ordered to pay the woman $3.2 million.

But a lawyer for the doctor tells NJ.com that his client will appeal the verdict handed down late last month by an Essex County jury, saying it was "excessive."

The jury awarded the woman $1.5 million for compensatory damages, plus $1.7 million in punitive damages.

The doctor, Jonathan Fellus of Glen Rock, admitted having a five-month affair that started in September 2008. The woman had suffered a traumatic brain injury following a car accident, and her lawyer said her injuries compromised her judgment and rendered her unable to consent to the affair.

Evan Goldman, a lawyer who represented Fellus, said he plans to challenge the verdict and seek a new trial.

"The amount of the verdict and punitive damages were totally excessive," Goldman said.

The woman's lawyer, Dennis Donnelly, noted that winning punitive damages in a malpractice case is "very uncommon," but noted they were "certainly justified in this case."

In a ruling issued last summer, the state Board of Medical Examiners suspended Fellus' license to practice medicine for three years for violating rules that bar doctors from having sex with their patients.