Court Upholds $1.3M in Legal Fees in BOE Discrimination Case

An appeals court today upheld a $1.3-million award for legal fees in a discrimination lawsuit brought by a former secretary against the Madison .

The board in February 2010 settled for an undisclosed amount with Joan Briel, 59, who sued in 2008 alleging discrimination after she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2002. She was fired while on medical leave in February 2007.

The sides in 2010 agreed to a confidential settlement, after which Briel moved for and obtained an award of legal fees totaling $874,731.85; that award included a 25 percent contingent fee enhancement for a total of $1,289,803.72. The Board had contested the award to the Aoppellate Division of Superior Court in Union County.

"I should have gotten more," said Briel in a telephone interview with Patch. She said that because of the length of the case, she lost her home to forclosure and had to move in with her father. Her illness has worsened in that time.

The school district's insurance will cover all but a small portion of the legal fee award.

"I can assure the public that the carrier is covering this claim, and therefore the ruling does not jeopardize school funds or programs in any way," said Lisa Ellis, president of the Board of Education.