The Shadow
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.V. (VR) – The business empire tied to U.S. Sen. Jim Justice is under mounting pressure on two fronts, with a wave of class action lawsuits targeting the Greenbrier Clinic and a parallel courtroom fight that could determine who ultimately controls the historic Greenbrier resort.
At the Greenbrier Clinic, federal regulators shut down mammography services on Feb. 26, 2026, after determining the facility failed to meet image-quality standards required under the federal Mammography Quality Standards Act. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration found the clinic fell out of compliance with criteria set by its accreditation body, the American College of Radiology.
The enforcement action covers mammograms performed between Oct. 28, 2023, and Feb. 26, 2026. In a March 23, 2026, notification letter to patients, the clinic acknowledged “serious concern” about mammography quality during that period and advised that many scans must be independently reviewed or repeated at other facilities. Staff radiologist Dr. Henry Setliff signed the letters.
Because the Greenbrier markets executive physicals and diagnostic services to high-net-worth guests alongside residents, more than 1,000 patients across the country and abroad may be affected, according to lawsuits filed in federal and state courts.
Recent federal class action complaints including Martin v. The Greenbrier Clinic and a new lawsuit brought by Greenbrier County residents April Wilson and Erin Dotson accuse the clinic of providing “inaccurate, inferior” mammograms that did not comply with required standards.
The suits allege:
· Unfair and deceptive practices: Plaintiffs say the clinic violated the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act by advertising advanced 3D mammography as innovative care while operating outside federal compliance.
· Unjust enrichment: The clinic is accused of collecting full-fee payments and insurance reimbursements for tests that federal regulators later deemed unreliable, without issuing refunds or covering replacement scans.
· Breach of contract and misrepresentation: Lawsuits say patients were given written reports describing results as benign and “highly reliable” even though the underlying images did not meet quality baselines.
· Emotional distress: Plaintiffs describe being told they were low risk for breast cancer, only to learn later that their test results “cannot be trusted,” leaving them anxious about undetected disease and facing added medical costs.
The proposed classes seek compensatory damages, statutory penalties and disgorgement of profits tied to the disputed mammograms.
In a statement through a public relations representative, Justice family business attorney Steve Ruby said the Greenbrier Clinic “takes patient care and safety extremely serious and strongly disputes any suggestion that patients were intentionally misled or that the clinic failed to act responsibly.” He said the clinic has appealed the FDA’s determination, calling it erroneous, and argued the agency’s conclusions “do not accurately reflect the quality of care provided.”
The Department of Health and Human Services, the FDA’s parent agency, did not respond to a request for comment cited in the complaints.
At the same time, the Justice family is locked in a separate, high-dollar dispute over control of the Greenbrier resort itself.
The Greenbrier was purchased out of bankruptcy by the Justice interests in 2009, financed largely through loans from Carter Bank & Trust. Over time, that debt rose into the hundreds of millions of dollars, leading to a series of at least fourteen forbearance agreements that kept foreclosure at bay even after defaults had occurred.
Earlier this year, White Sulphur Springs Holdings, an affiliate of Omni Hotels and Resorts owned by Texas businessmen Robert and Blake Rowling, bought nearly $300 million in first-lien Greenbrier debt from Carter Bank. The holding company now controls the debt, but not the hotel itself.
White Sulphur Springs Holdings has asked a federal court for receivership and a temporary injunction that would remove the Justices from operational control, alleging that profits have been diverted while maintenance is deferred, putting the collateral at risk.
The Justice family responded by suing Carter Bank and the Omni affiliated holding company in Greenbrier County Circuit Court, arguing that the bank and the Rowlings used insider information to gain control of the resort’s debt and “steal” the hotel. They contend that alleged misconduct in those transactions undermines the federal foreclosure case, what their filing characterizes as an “original sin” that should cause the later lawsuit to collapse.
Carter Bank is now asking a Greenbrier County judge to dismiss the local case, pointing to venue clauses in nearly two dozen financial agreements. Those contracts, the bank argues, require that “any legal action or proceeding” related to the loans be brought in courts in Martinsville, Va., or the federal court for the Western District of Virginia, or another venue of the bank’s choosing.
Bank attorneys say the Justice entities are sophisticated business actors who knowingly agreed to those terms and are now trying to gain leverage by suing at home.
Steve Ruby, representing the Justice family, countered in a statement that the defendants “don’t want to face the people of Greenbrier County, whose jobs and livelihoods they’re putting at risk.” He said the family will “fight any attempt to remove this case from the local community” and will work to protect the resort, its employees and West Virginia from “exploitation by out-of-state companies.”
The venue dispute underscores what is at stake for workers and the regional economy: a local jury in a county where the Greenbrier is a major employer, or courts in Virginia more removed from West Virginia politics and job impacts.
Together, the mammography lawsuits and the Greenbrier control fight highlight the deepening legal and financial challenges confronting the Justice family’s businesses, from patients questioning the reliability of their cancer screenings to creditors and competitors maneuvering for one of West Virginia’s most prominent resorts.
