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Lawyers file case to dismiss remaining defendants from trial
By Tina Traster
Will the Pearl River Chamber of Commerce irrevocably suffer due to ongoing litigation in a protracted lawsuit that began with a dispute between former directors and a former treasurer?
Attorney Don Feerick, who is representing the House in the case, thinks so.
“They’re collapsing under the weight of this burden,” Feerick said. “It is becoming more and more difficult for the Chamber to focus on its mission.
The case began in February when former treasurer Michelle Worob filed a libel suit in Rockland Supreme Court against four former directors. Subsequently, former Speaker of the House and defendant Brian Campbell sued the House, alleging his failure to cover his legal fees through the House’s insurance company.
The case is progressing slowly in court.
In October, a Rockland County Supreme Court judge dismissed the case against one of the four defendants, Lisa Williams, and another defendant, Jenna Fabio, was recently released by stipulation between attorneys representing the two sides. . But the House is still in the heart of the matter.
New York attorney G. Oliver Koppell, who represents the four defendants, filed a motion this week to dismiss the two remaining defendants, Matthew Worgul and Brian Campbell. The lawyer relied on a recent ruling that the plaintiff’s complaint did not meet defamation standards, as well as a copy of an audit of the chambers’ books which he said revealed mismanagement of the books.
“The clear standard of defamation has not been met here,” Koppell said.
In dismissing Williams, Judge Paul Marx said the allegations against Williams were “insufficiently stated” and that plaintiff Michelle Worob had not sufficiently alleged that Williams had spoken the words Worob claims were defamatory. Additionally, the judge said from the bench on September 27 that Worob’s role as House Treasurer made her a “public figure” and that the bar for a defamation case is higher when a public figure public sues for defamation.
Attorney Brian Condon, who is presenting Worob, filed a notice of appeal.
“We appealed Marx’s decision regarding Ms. Williams in which my client was found to be a public person,” Condon said. “We don’t believe she is. We will vigorously defend against their motion, and based on the affidavits, I anticipate that these motions will be denied.
Condon refers to potentially defamatory statements the defendants allegedly made to people in the community, including Orangetown Supervisor Teresa Kenny, Orangetown Director of Economic Development Carmel Reilly, Nanuet House Member George Mollo, Northern Chamber of Commerce member Tom Ossa, and other third parties.
In February, the Chamber hired forensic accountant James DeMinno CPA of New City to perform an audit of Worob’s books.
The auditor concluded, in a report issued in July, “the financial condition of the Pearl River Chamber of Commerce for 2018, 2019 and 2020, as well as the results of its operations and its cash flows for the financial year then ended in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States”
However, in a separate section of the audit entitled “Notes to the financial statements”, the auditor states: “there were numerous checks (for a small amount[s]) that were issued to “Cash”. We could not decipher the endorsement signature, verify to whom the payment was made. No check should be issued to the order of Cash. The name of the recipient and the subject of the check must appear on each check.
The notes also state that refund checks should not be issued without accompanying receipts, that anyone receiving a check for $600 or more should be issued a 1099. And the notes point out that “several checks written to different dining locations for gift certificates were missing names in the memos. The notes also question a July 31, 2018 payment of $351 to O&R.
Koppell said the audit confirms that the statements made by the defendants were accurate.
“The accounting, to say the least, was shoddy,” Koppell said. “There were entries made in cash that should not have been made in cash. There were omissions that suggested a failure to submit certain receipts.
Koppell said the audit results “did not give rise to criminal activity, but the omissions should allow for the possibility of inappropriate spending.”
In late September, the Chamber posted a statement on its Facebook page saying the audit had cleared Worob’s name, although the Chamber did not release the audit.
Worob, who spoke publicly for the first time, told RCBJ she felt exonerated by the audit and was still saddened by the allegations of financial mismanagement.
“I was in the House for 20 years,” Worob said. “I gave of my time tirelessly and effortlessly to build the chamber. It is a very important organization for me. I didn’t want to be treasurer. No one wanted the job. Nobody would intervene. Being accused of embezzlement is so upsetting. It’s a stab in the back. »
In February, Worob filed a lawsuit in Rockland County Supreme Court against four former trustees, claiming their negative public characterizations of her work as treasurer amounted to libel. In her defamation lawsuit, Worob, owner of Luigi O’Grady’s Deli in Pearl River, alleges that Campbell, Worgul, Williams and Fabio made statements suggesting that Worob, who served as treasurer from 2011 to 2019, “misappropriated ‘money for its own benefit and gain’. ”
Worob, who is seeking $1 million in damages, denies any allegations of wrongdoing in her role as treasurer and touts her accomplishments over many years with the House in the lawsuit.
In a “third-party complaint” filed by Campbell, the defendant and third-party plaintiff allege that executives are entitled to two types of protection: compensation under the settlements for “claims, damages, losses and expenses arising from , or resulting from the exercise » of his duties as Chairman. The lawsuit also alleges that the House was required to carry insurance to protect the officers against any claims for damages not covered by the indemnity provision of the statutes.
In response, the Chamber asserted that his actions, if true, constituted “a form of gross negligence”, which went beyond the behavior of an officer. The House’s response essentially boils down to the idea that it is not obligated to cover an officer for “intentional torts” such as defamation and the negligent infliction of emotional distress.
Further, the House also says that if indeed there was no adequate insurance, it was Campbell’s fault because he was President at the time.
However, the filing also cites that Campbell’s successors have since obtained insurance.
Koppell said the Chamber was not released from the case because there are outstanding charges that have not been paid by the insurance company, Great American Insurance.
“The Chamber has denied our clients the right to be compensated under the policy,” Koppell said. “They eventually agreed they had an obligation to pay the legal fees, but the insurance company didn’t start paying until April. My client Lisa Williams, who was sued in February, lost over $10,000. We are seeking to recover these legal fees.
Feerick, House Counsel and Spokesperson, said, “The House Speaker provided prompt notice of the lawsuit to the insurance company when she first received news of the lawsuit. The insurer has undertaken to investigate. It took time, as it often does. Ultimately, the insurer has elected to provide a defense and is paying the defense costs. The insurer also reserved its rights on the question of compensation (because compensation is only necessary after the trial, during the final judgment).
Feerick acknowledged that no agreement had been reached to release the Chamber from the lawsuit, adding: “I hope this will not prevent the Chamber from moving forward, from fulfilling its mission and from doing the good job she is doing.”
House Speaker Susan Perzigian did not respond to requests for comment.
