Seattle cosmetic surgeon who performs sex changes illegally blocked negative reviews by forcing patients to sign NDAs and threatening them with $250,000 fines, judge rules

A cosmetic surgeon in Seattle illegally blocked negative reviews by forcing patients to sign NDAs and threatening them with $250,000 fines, a judge has ruled. 

Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a lawsuit against Allure Esthetic and its owner, Dr. Javad Sajan, over violation of state and federal laws protecting consumers and patient privacy in December 2022.

Federal Judge Ricardo S. Martinez ruled on Friday that Sajan and Allure Esthetic prevented thousands of patients posting negative online reviews by making them sign nondisclosure agreements before they received treatments.

The lawsuit claimed Allure went to extreme measures to block negative reviews by suing anonymous reviewers for defamation. One former employee described their tactics as 'relentless'.

A trial to determine what penalty Sajan and Allure will face has been scheduled for September, according to the Seattle Times. 

Dr, Javad Sajan (pictured left) is a cosmetic surgeon in Seattle who illegally prevented negative reviews by forcing patients to sign NDAs and threatened them with $250,000 fines

Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a lawsuit in December 2022 against Allure Esthetic and its owner, Dr. Javad Sajan, for violation of state and federal laws protecting consumers and patient privacy 

Federal Judge Ricardo S. Martinez (pictured) ruled on Friday that Sajan and Allure Esthetic prevented thousands of patients from posting negative online reviews by making them sign nondisclosure agreements before they received their treatments

The website of Allure Esthetics that shows is an of Dr. Javad Sajan as it publicizes the plastic surgeon's podcast that describes the shows as  'unique stores, raw pain, real triumphs' 

'Online reviews are often the first stop when consumers are determining who to trust,' Ferguson said in the news release Monday. 

The year-long investigation conducted by the attorney general's office in 2022 saw 10 consumers and 40 former employees at Allure Esthetic interviewed in response to complaints.

Between 2017 and 2019 Allure made over 10,000 consumers sign non-disclosure agreements before having a consultation that required patients to contact the business instead of posting a negative review, Seattle Times reported. 

Ferguson said that if a patient wrote a negative review about the practice the clinic would bribe them with cash and services to remove it. If a patient refused, Allure would threaten to sue them.

Those who accepted the bribe to take down the negative reviews were forced to sign a second non-disclosure agreement stating that they could face a $250,000 fine if they post any negative reviews in the future.

Ferguson said: 'Allure stopped at nothing to keep negative reviews off the internet.'  

His lawsuit also alleged that Allure edited before and after pictures of patients.

The company was also accused of purchasing fake followers and 'likes,' and creating phony profiles to write positive reviews of the company.  

The lawsuit also claimed the company used the patients' real names and birthdates to apply for rebate programs with fake emails and then pocketed the money. 

Allure received thousands of dollars every month from the rebates intended for the company's patients.

Sajan performs sex-changing surgeries like body masculinization, transgender male-to-female breast augmentations and facial feminization surgery

A 'before-and-after' photo of a facial feminization procedure that Dr. Sajan performed that involved 'hairline lowering, brow bone reduction, rhinoplasty and a chin reduction'

A 'before-and-after photo one month following a procedure of a transgender male-to-female gender affirming brow bone reduction, hairline lowering with endotine, brow lift, rhinoplasty, lip lift, chin bone reduction and mandibular jaw reduction' 

Ferguson alleged this was in violation of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), an act that prohibits certain entities from disclosing sensitive health information without 'valid' authorization. 

The attorney general said Allure removed the language in 2019, but the company continued to require these 'pre-service' agreements until March 2022. 

During the press conference, Ferguson quoted a former employee who gave examples of some of the alterations made. 

'I was asked to manipulate the after photograph of a patient who had hair plugs to cover a bald spot, and I was asked to photoshop the photos of patients who had tummy tuck procedures and make them look curvier and flatter,' one said.

Ferguson added that former web designers who worked for Allure between 2018 and 2021 said they regularly posted fake reviews by creating fictional online personas at the owner's direction. 

They were also told to use stock photos and build a persona to create a more realistic profile to post reviews from Allure.

They also alleged that Allure also used a virtual private network or VPN to conceal the IP addresses of reviews. 

Ferguson called it an 'elaborate system', so fake reviews could not be traced back to the company or be flagged as false.

The Seattle office of Allure Esthetics located at 601 Broadway 

Sajan performs sex-changing surgeries such as body masculinization, transgender male-to-female breast augmentations and facial feminization surgery, as well as standard cosmetic procedures such as liposuction and facelifts. 

DialyMail.com has reached out to Allure Esthetic for comment.