Jury finds University
guilty of retaliation
By Ken Fountain
Senior Staff Writer
In a Monday verdict whose rapid speed stunned
even the attorneys involved, a jury ruled after less than an hour of deliberation
that the University
and the UH System retaliated against former
assistant general counsel Susan Septimus and forced her to resign for making
complaints against
her then-boss, UH General Counsel Dennis
Duffy.
The four-woman, three-man jury awarded
Septimus a total of $296,000 in past and future economic damages and $100,000
in compensatory
damages (for mental anguish and other
injuries).
While the compensatory and "back-end" economic
damages (those Septimus has suffered to date in lost wages and benefits)
are fixed, U.S.
District Judge Vanessa Gilmore has discretion
to change the "front-end" damages, those Septimus may suffer in the future.
"I'm so gratified by the decision," Septimus
said in brief remarks to reporters after the verdict. She referred other
questions to her lead attorney,
Andrew Golub.
"We're absolutely thrilled (with the verdict).
The jury confirmed what we've been saying for four years," Golub said.
"The University of Houston has never been
willing to take responsibility for what it did. Maybe they will pay better
attention next time," he said.
In a written statement, the University
said it was reviewing the jury's findings.
"It's important to note that prior to the
start of the trial, (Gilmore) granted summary judgement in favor of the
University regarding claims by
Septimus of gender discrimination, sexual
harassment and hostile work environment involving the University's Office
of General Counsel," the
statement said.
Citing the fact that the case is still
ongoing (that is, it can be appealed), the University declined further
comment.
Following Monday morning's closing arguments,
Gilmore gave the jurors her instructions as to the questions of law they
were to decide.
As in all civil lawsuits, Septimus as plaintiff
had to make the case that the "preponderance of the evidence" supported
her claims that the
University retaliated against her for
filing her charges against Duffy, and that it later made her working conditions
so intolerable that she was
forced to quit.
Expecting the jurors to take a lunch break
before beginning deliberations, Gilmore asked them to first choose a foreperson.
A few minutes later,
they sent word they would begin deliberations
right away.
Within an hour, the verdict was in. Golub
told reporters that he had just begun eating lunch when he received the
word.
Septimus was one of three female staffers
of the Office of the General Counsel who lodged internal complaints of
discrimination against Duffy in
March 1998. In order to avoid a conflict
of interest, the University hired outside lawyer Deborah McElvaney to conduct
an investigation.
McElvaney submitted a 20-page report of
her findings to UH System Chancellor/UH President Arthur K. Smith in April
1998. She found, in part,
that Duffy had discriminated against Septimus
when he failed to consider her for a promotion to associate general counsel,
and that he had
created a "hostile and abusive work environment"
toward women.
Smith appointed a committee of three top
UH administrators to evaluate McElvaney's findings.
After interviewing the complainants and
Duffy, the committee found in its own report that there was insufficient
evidence to support the women's
claims of discrimination and retaliation.
But it did suggest Duffy undergo management training to improve his communication
skills with
subordinates.
Jury foreman Wesley Wallace said the jurors
decided within 20 minutes that "the University and the UH System were responsible"
for retaliating
against and constructively discharging
Septimus.
Wallace said jurors determined that Septimus
"was almost set upon" for filing her charges against Duffy.
The remaining time was spent determining
Septimus' damages, said Wallace, a retired sales and marketing executive
of the Vallen Corporation,
a Houston-based industrial safety supply
company.
"It was just a matter of doing the arithmetic,"
he said.
There was no indication Monday whether
the University and the UH System would file future motions seeking a lessening
of the damages or
appeal the verdict to the U.S. Fifth Circuit
Court of Appeals.
Another of the original complainants against
Duffy, Glena Sue Yerby (who currently serves as business manager in the
UH Facilities Planning
and Construction Office), has also filed
a similar federal lawsuit against the University. Her case is scheduled
for trial in September. Golub
represents her as well.
The other complainant, former OGC secretary
Carolyn Williams, did not pursue her charges.
