Medical practice, ex-doctors mired in legal dispute

Just as 21st Century Oncology — under new ownership and leadership — nears the completion of its emergence from bankruptcy and legal challenges, the Fort Myers firm faces a new lawsuit brought by four former physicians.

The foursome, alleging 21st Century is an illegal monopoly, includes one of the company’s co-founders and the son and daughter of another co-founder, all of whom have left the company. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Fort Myers, also poses a business conundrum: can a noncompete contract become a company's move toward creating a monopoly in a hard-to-enter niche medical service?