On July 23, 2010, plaintiff David Overlund, 49, an unemployed handy man, was riding his bicycle on the walkway in the county of Los Angeles when it came into contact with an AT&T handhole, which is a shallow form of manhole giving access to a top row of ducts in an underground electrical system, that had a missing lid on it. As a result, Overlund was thrown from his bicycle and struck the ground, allegedly aggravating his pre-existing lower back condition. Overlund sued AT&T, alleging that the company failed to properly inspect and maintain the handhole, creating a dangerous condition of public property. AT&T brought a third-party complaint against Overlund’s treating physicians, Dr. John Chiu and Dr. George Rappard. It alleged that Overlund’s back surgery was performed without the patient’s informed consent. Plaintiff’s counsel contended that AT&T had no protocols to inspect the hundreds of thousands of handholes it had in the United States, and that the subject handhole was never inspected since it was placed in the ground in 1971. AT&T contended that it relied upon third parties to inform it of any issues with the handholes and that AT&T’s employees, when on duty, would remedy any issue they became aware of during the course of scope of their employment., Overlund claimed he aggravated his pre-existing back condition as a result of being thrown from his bicycle. Eight days before the subject incident, on July 15, 2010, Overlund presented for a back surgery consultation. He claimed that during the consultation it was recommended that he would need an X-stop placed at multiple levels in his back. However, Overlund contended that as a result of the subject bicycle accident, he instead required a microdecompressive lumbar discectomy at L3-4, L4-5 and L5-S1 on Sept. 30, 2010. Despite the surgery, Overlund complained of ongoing pain, and on Oct. 5, 2010, five days after the surgery, he received epidural injections to the left L3-4, left L4-5, and left L5-S1 levels. Overlund did not receive any further significant treatment after Oct. 5, 2010. AT&T brought a third-party action against Overlund’s treating physicians, Dr. John Chiu and Dr. George Rappard, alleging that the doctors performed the surgery without Overlund’s informed consent. AT&T’s counsel argued that the surgery that was going to be performed on Overlund was changed at the last minute, when Overlund already had an IV in him, and that a triple discectomy should not have been performed. Thus, AT&T’s counsel disputed the bills generated by the physicians, which amounted to close to $100,000.