Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Emmanuel ”Manny” Hostin is currently involved in a legal case that could have major consequences.
Met at a church
Asunción “Sunny” Hostin is a name many recognize, not only for her prominent role as co-host on ABC’s The View, but also as a respected lawyer, author, and legal analyst.
Born on October 20, 1968, Sunny’s journey has been nothing short of inspiring. She’s received nominations for Daytime Emmy Awards for her work on The View and serves as ABC News’ Senior Legal Correspondent.
But her personal life has been just as compelling.
Sunny and her husband, Dr. Emmanuel “Manny” Hostin, have been partners in life for over two decades. The couple first met at a church in Maryland while Manny was studying at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he graduated in 1996.
Sunny recalled that she had gone to church after a run and “certainly wasn’t dressed to attend service that day” when she first laid eyes on her future husband.
“He was gorgeous, decked out in a beautifully tailored suit,” she wrote. Wanting to meet him, she decided to follow him to a nearby bagel shop after the service and struck up a conversation.
Just two years later, in 1998, they tied the knot.
The couple now live in a luxurious 10-bedroom, 10-bathroom estate in Purchase, New York.
Five miscarriages
Over the years, they’ve navigated many of life’s highs and lows together, including Sunny’s open struggles with infertility. After enduring five miscarriages and IVF treatments, the couple was blessed with two children, Gabriel and Paloma.
“I thought, I need to talk about this so that women know they’re not alone and that it’s nothing to be ashamed of,” she has said.
Through it all, Manny, an orthopedic surgeon, has been by her side. But during the summer of 2022, Sunny made the decision to undergo a breast reduction, lift, and liposuction—a choice she described as both a health and self-care decision. “I feel like a better version of myself,” she told PEOPLE about the transformation.
However, not everyone was immediately on board. Her husband, Manny, had concerns, and two years earlier, both he and her The View co-host Joy Behar had convinced her to reconsider. Behar had warned about the risks of anesthesia, while Manny reassured her, saying, “You’re beautiful. You’re hot. You’re sexy.”
Followed her instincts
But Sunny ultimately followed her instincts. She scheduled the procedures without telling Manny until just two days before the surgery. “I wasn’t asking for permission or input,” she explained. “I was simply informing him—because I have full agency over my body, and this was something I needed to do for myself.”
Now, she feels more confident than ever. “I prance around nude all the time at my house—I feel great,” she said.
While Sunny thrives in the public eye, balancing her roles as a television host, legal analyst, and author, Manny is just as successful in his career as a sports doctor and surgeon. Together, they’ve built a life full of love, ambition, and family, making it clear that they’re not just partners in marriage but in every aspect of life.
Yet, despite their success, recent events have cast a shadow over their years of happiness.
The legal storm
In January 2025, Manny found himself involved in a legal storm, named as one of 199 defendants in a massive insurance fraud lawsuit under the RICO Act in New York. Manny, along with the others, is accused of accepting kickbacks for performing surgeries and submitting fraudulent bills to a company that insures taxi services and Uber and Lyft drivers.
The lawsuit, filed on December 17, 2024, claims that ”Hostin knowingly provided fraudulent medical and other healthcare services, including arthroscopic surgeries.”
The insurance company, American Transit, was allegedly billed ”in exchange for kickbacks and/or other compensation which were disguised as dividends or other cash distributions.”
Hostin’s attorney, Daniel Thwaites, responded to the allegations in January, telling DailyMail.com that his client ”denies each and every allegation” and described the lawsuit as a ”blanket, scattershot, meritless lawsuit by a near-bankrupt insurance carrier.”
Seeking over $450 million in damages
Thwaites went on to say, ”It is meant to intimidate and harass doctors from collecting for care provided to American Transit insureds and their passengers.” He defended Hostin’s reputation, calling it “impeccable” and pointed out that American Transit had filed the lawsuit without properly investigating Dr. Hostin or raising any concerns with his legal team.
”The real story here is about an insurance carrier abusing the legal system to limit and restrict health care benefits to its insureds and their passengers, and write off its proper obligations,” Thwaites added.
In the federal lawsuit filed in Brooklyn, Dr. Emmanuel ”Manny” Hostin, 54, is identified as the owner of Hostin Orthopaedics, operating from an eighth-floor office on Lexington Avenue near Manhattan’s Grand Central Terminal.
The insurance company, American Transit, is seeking over $450 million in damages. According to the lawsuit, American Transit alleges that Hostin received an ”investment” interest in Empire State Ambulatory Surgery Center in return for directing a ”steady stream,” of patients to the facility.
”Empire State ASC issued regular payments to or for the benefit of Hostin, which, in fact, were illegal kickbacks for referrals,” the court documents state.
