A Kaiser Permanente gynecologist in Gilroy who was arrested in May for allegedly sexually assaulting several women during exams was named in a civil suit filed Friday by seven former patients.

The lawsuit, filed in Santa Clara County Superior Court, alleges that Raul Ixtlahuac of Salinas fondled and penetrated the patients, some of whom were pregnant, during pelvic exams.

Most of the incidents occurred last fall, though one case dates to 1996, said the plaintiffs' attorney, Richard Alexander. The patients' names were withheld from court documents.

Officials of Kaiser - Gilroy , also named in the suit, said Friday that administrators take the allegations ''very seriously.'' The suit, which seeks damages, alleges rape and reckless and negligent supervision.

The 39-year-old doctor has been on administrative leave since he was arrested . He has worked for Kaiser for 10 years.

Ixtlahuac, who couldn't be reached for comment, was booked on four counts of sexual assault in May after an eight-month investigation by police.

A hearing on the criminal case is set Sept. 7.

Four of the seven women in the lawsuit were in their third term of pregnancy, and all were between 25 and 40 years old.

The civil suit states that Ixtlahuac examined the women in a Kaiser medical office without an aide or a nurse being present.

''When seven people report the same facts, it's not a matter of smelling smoke and suspecting fire. This is a bonfire,'' Alexander said.