Magistrate Judge Dismisses Former Athletic Director’s Claim That School Violated Separation Agreement
A magistrate judge from the Western District of Wisconsin has dismissed with prejudice the claim of a former athletic director and women’s basketball coach for Northland College, who alleged that his former employer violated their separation agreement when the school’s radio station reported on the circumstances that led to his firing.
Plaintiff William Wilson began working for Northland, a small private college in Ashland, Wisc., in August 2009 as the head women’s basketball coach and assistant athletic director. In 2011, he began jointly serving as the college’s director of athletics while continuing his role as the head women’s basketball coach. In the fall of 2013, Wilson became Northland’s full-time director of athletics.
In 2013, Northland began investigating a complaint that Wilson had created a hostile work environment by making inappropriate comments to female employees. Northland concluded that there was insufficient evidence to support a finding that Wilson had created a hostile work environment.
On Feb. 27, 2014, Northland investigated a Title IX complaint alleging that Wilson had engaged in discriminatory treatment of female students on the women’s basketball team. On or about April 8, 2014, Northland informed Wilson that, after investigating the complaint “and considering the issues which have arisen in the past about which you have full knowledge,” Northland had decided that it would be Wilson’s final year as athletic director.
Wilson resigned in April 2014. Shortly thereafter, the parties entered into a “Separation Agreement and Release,” signed by Wilson and Northland’s director of human resources. It reads:
“Northland and Wilson agree that they will jointly issue a statement which may be in the form of a press release indicating that Wilson is leaving his employment with Northland effective June 30, 2014 to pursue other opportunities. This statement must be issued by April 25, 2014 and the parties agree that they will work cooperatively in preparing it. Wilson agrees that he will not orally or in writing disparage Northland in general or any of its officers, faculty members, staff, students, employees or members of the Board of Trustees. To the extent that either party is asked by a media source of any sort to provide an additional explanation, both parties will state that the mutually agreed upon statement speaks for itself.”
The impetus for the lawsuit was a series of radio broadcasts and corresponding on-line stories published in May 2014 by Danielle Kaeding, who was the program director at Northland’s college radio station. Wilson alleged that the stories, in which Kaeding interviewed Wilson’s accusers and reported on the investigations, breached a separation agreement, which restricted what Northland could say about his resignation in response to media inquiries. Wilson also has brought claims for invasion of privacy under Wis. Stat. § 995.50(2)© and negligent supervision of its employee, Kaeding.
Northland moved to dismiss the amended complaint, pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6), for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted.
The court granted the motion, noting that Wilson “cannot state a plausible claim for invasion of privacy because the matters on which Kaeding reported were public, not private facts.”
Further, the breach of contract claim fails because he has failed to articulate a plausible theory of breach that is tied to the language of the parties’ agreement and the contract’s plain language does not support his claim.
“Finally, Wilson’s negligent supervision claim fails because the only duty that Northland allegedly breached was the duty to abide by the terms of the contract, which cannot provide the basis for a tort claim.”
William Wilson v. Northland College and WRM America Indemnity Company; W.D. Wisc.; 17-cv-337-slc, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3557; 1/9/18
Attorneys of Record: (for plaintiff: Richard Francis Rice, LEAD ATTORNEY, Fox & Fox Law Office, Monona, WI. (for defendant) Jeffrey Michael Markowitz, Sarah Elisabeth Bushnell, LEAD ATTORNEYS, Arthur Chapman Kettering Smetak & Pikala, P.A., Minneapolis, MN.
