A TOTAL VICTORY FOR PCKB CLIENTS!
PCKB partners, Rick Pinto and Deb Bowers, successfully defended The Epiphany School of Global Studies, Nicholas Sparks, and other members of the Board of Trustees against claims for wrongful termination and violation of the ADA alleged by the former Head of School. The Epiphany School is a Christian based private school (grades 1-12) located in New Bern, North Carolina that was started by author, Nicholas Sparks, and his wife Cathy in 2006. Mr. Sparks individually and The Nicholas Sparks Foundation were also defendants in the case. After 12 out of 16 original claims brought by Plaintiff, Saul Benjamin, were dismissed at the Rule 12(b)6 stage or on summary judgment, four remaining claims against The Epiphany School, Sparks and The Foundation were tried to a jury of 10 in The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina in Raleigh before the Honorable Judge James C. Dever III.
The PCKB team has fought these claims during almost five years of litigation against the Plaintiff’s lawyers from New York City. After 6 days, with Rick Pinto acting as lead counsel for the School, the trial concluded on August 23rd when the jury unanimously ruled in favor of The Epiphany School, The Nicholas Sparks Foundation and Mr. Sparks on all 4 remaining claims.