Professionals

Personal Quote
"Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future."
- J.F. Kennedy

Biography
Diane S. Robben is a Shareholder and joined Sandberg Phoenix & von Gontard in 1997. She focuses her practice in the firm's Health Law Practice Group. For years she led the firms’ Associate Committee, mentoring newer associates into the practice of law and the nuances of working in a large law firm. She currently Co-Chairs the firm’s Women’s Forum, where they provide educational and leadership opportunities for women to advance their careers, both through internal promotion and external networking. Diane is a former Missouri Lawyers Weekly Up and Coming Lawyer, being recognized by her peers within the legal community. She also serves as a member of the firm’s Marketing Committee.

Medical Malpractice Defense
Diane has experience in representing numerous hospitals and healthcare providers in Illinois and Missouri, defending cases involving wrongful death, catastrophic brain injuries, and a wide array of medical matters including emergency medicine, obstetrics/gynecologic, neonatology, post-surgical management, negligent credentialing, chiropractic care and nursing negligence. She represents physicians, nurses, chiropractors and other health care professionals in all phases of litigation.

Health Care Transactional
Diane also leads the firm’s transactional and regulatory health care practice, devoting a significant amount of time advising hospitals, physicians, nursing homes and other healthcare providers on a variety of issues to find practical solutions to complicated legal problems. For instance, she regularly offers guidance on regulatory and transactional issues related to business transactions, such as fraud and abuse, anti-kickback, Stark, joint ventures, physician recruitment, EMTALA, Medicare compliance, medical billing and coding, contract review, physician practice association, and medical staff issues. Furthermore, she routinely advises healthcare providers on various risk management, compliance and operational issues, such as general healthcare, patient care issues, medical records release, HIPAA/HITECH compliance, policy and procedure review, human resources, end-of-life issues and guardianships.

Diane also regularly assists practitioners in reviewing, drafting, and negotiating contracts pertaining to operational and management functions, including but not limited to personal services, physician recruitment, employment, medical directors, vendor services, consulting, shared services, and lease/equipment rental.

She has also represented physicians, chiropractors, psychiatrists and nurses before the Department of Professional Regulations in both Illinois and Missouri. Diane is experienced in medical staff credentialing, governance, disciplinary matters, impaired health professional issues, patient rights issues and bio-ethical issues. She has served as a Hearing Officer in medical staff peer review proceedings at numerous hospitals.

She has spoken to various healthcare clients, as well as other practicing attorneys on such topics as Confidentiality of Medical Records in Illinois, Motion Practice, Representing Physicians and Nurses in Disciplinary Actions, Medical Charting and Credentialing, HIPAA and HITECH Act, Risk Management, and Medicare Secondary Payer Act. She is the firm’s HIPAA and Medicare expert, and is often consulted by other lawyers on these topics. She has also published several articles on these topics in the firm’s periodic Health Law Practice Group Newsletter, as well as the Hospital Legal Pulse, a quarterly firm publication for rural hospitals on various topics.

Practice Groups
- Health Law

Industries/Areas of Practice
- Physicians
- Hospitals
- Health Care Transactional/Regulatory
- Nursing Homes

Civic Activities
Diane serves as a member of the DePaul Foundation, assisting with fundraising activities for DePaul Health Center in Bridgeton, Missouri, and serving as Chair of the Auction Committee of Lattinville Golf Clinic. She is also actively involved with her community and her two daughters’ schools.

Professional Activities
Diane is licensed to practice in the states of Missouri and Illinois, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri and the Southern District of Illinois.

She is a member of the Missouri Bar Association, the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, the St. Louis Area Risk Managers Association, the St. Louis Area Health Lawyers Association, American Health Lawyers Association, Missouri Society of Health Care Attorneys, Illinois Hospital Association, and the Missouri Adult Day Services Association.

Diane is also involved with the Southern Illinois University School of Law Alumni Association, and the Bradley University Alumni.

Education
Diane earned her Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, Phi Kappa Phi, from Southern Illinois University School of Law, Carbondale in 1997.