Attorney James Radford attained an unanimous decision by the Georgia Supreme Court, reversing a lower court’s order that the City and Mayor of Greenville, Georgia, were immune from liability for acts taken without authority of law.

In a unanimous opinion, the Georgia Supreme Court today held that the City of Greenville, Georgia, [...]]]> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Attorney James Radford attained an unanimous decision by the Georgia Supreme Court, reversing a lower court’s order that the City and Mayor of Greenville, Georgia, were immune from liability for acts taken without authority of law.

In a unanimous opinion, the Georgia Supreme Court today held that the City of Greenville, Georgia, as well as Greenville Mayor James Bray, may be personally liable for damages arising from the unlawful termination of the Chief of Police and City Clerk in January of 2008. A lower court had held that both the City and the Mayor were immune from any claims for damages. The Supreme Court’s order reverses that decision, setting the case up for trial.

Bray terminated Greenville Chief of Police Daryl Williams and City Clerk Johnnie Mae Owens shortly after he was sworn into office in 2008. According to Williams’ and Owens’ judicial complaint, Bray terminated them as one of his first acts of office, without a vote by the City Council, and over the objections of a majority of the members of the City Council. Williams and Owens argued that, under the laws and regulations governing employment in Greenville, the appointment of the Chief of Police and City Clerk was up to a majority vote of the City Council, and the Mayor was without authority to terminate them on his own.

The Georgia Supreme Court agreed with Williams and Owens, holding that, if they can prove to a jury that Mayor Bray’s actions were carried out “without authority of law,” he and the City would be liable for any damages arising from his actions. The Court held:

Statutory  law  provides [. . .] Members of the council and other officers of a municipal corporation shall be personally liable to one who sustains special damages as the result of any official act of such officers if done oppressively, maliciously, corruptly, or without authority of law. [. . .]

In this case, Owens and Williams have maintained throughout that Bray unilaterally terminated them from their position without authority of law because the City passed a 2007 resolution requiring that the mayor get City Council approval prior to any such termination. At the very least, a question of fact remains whether Bray acted “without authority of law” by failing to comply with this directive. As such, he was not entitled to summary judgment on this point pursuant to official immunity.

Attorney James Radford represented Owens and Williams both in the lower court proceedings and before the Supreme Court. “The court’s order stands for the principle that being an elected official does not give you a license to break the rules. If you abuse your authority, you will have to answer to the law.”

The Supreme Court’s full opinion can be found at the following link: http://www.gasupreme.us/sc-op/pdf/s11a1645.pdf

Specifically, the law provides, at O.C.G.A. [...]]]> In the state of Georgia, “whistleblowers” are protected from retaliation by public employers. If you are employed by the state, or by any local government that receives state funding (including counties and municipalities), the law protects your right to disclose violations of law by officials in your department.

Specifically, the law provides, at O.C.G.A. 45-1-4(d):

(1) No public employer shall make, adopt, or enforce any policy or practice preventing a public employee from disclosing a violation of or noncompliance with a law, rule, or regulation to either a supervisor or a government agency.

(2) No public employer shall retaliate against a public employee for disclosing a violation of or noncompliance with a law, rule, or regulation to either a supervisor or a government agency, unless the disclosure was made with knowledge that the disclosure was false or with reckless disregard for its truth or falsity.

(3) No public employer shall retaliate against a public employee for objecting to, or refusing to participate in, any activity, policy, or practice of the public employer that the public employee has reasonable cause to believe is in violation of or noncompliance with a law, rule, or regulation.

If you have been terminated, demoted, suspended, or otherwise retaliated against by a public employer after disclosing a violation of the law by a public official,  you may be protected by Georgia’s whistleblower law. Under this law, you may be entitled to reinstatement to your job, as well as damages to compensate you for all harm brought upon you by the retaliation.

James and the attorneys of Parks, Chesin & Walbert can help you determine whether you have a claim under Georgia’s whistleblower law. If you think you have suffered retaliation for disclosing a violation of law by a public official, give us a call to set up a consultation. Our number is (404) 873 8000.

However, there are times when a supervisor or coworker’s behavior goes far beyond what [...]]]> Unfortunately, anyone who goes into the workplace will experience uncomfortable situations. Everyone has experienced a grumpy boss, an annoying coworker, or a flirtatious supervisor. While uncomfortable, these types of normal workplace annoyances are something the law expects us to withstand.

However, there are times when a supervisor or coworker’s behavior goes far beyond what is acceptable, and into the realm of sexual harassment. This is unwanted behavior of a sexual nature that is so severe or pervasive that it makes it nearly impossible to do your job.

The Supreme Court has defined sexual harassment as follows:

unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when (1) submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment, (2) submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as a basis for employment decisions affecting such individual (both quid pro quo harassment), or (3) such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment (condition of work harassment).

But, even if you feel you have experienced sexual harassment, your first step is not the court system. The Supreme Court has held that an employee must take all steps offered by her employer to complain about the harassment before she has a right to go to court.

So what should you do if you are experiencing sexual harassment? The first step is to locate your company’s employee manual (if there is one) or sexual harassment policy. Find out who that policy says you need to bring complaints to, and do so. If that doesn’t help, go up the chain of command. Complain to that person’s supervisor. Give your employer all possible opportunities to correct the problem on their own.

Hopefully, your employer will take action to put a stop to the harassment. But if they do not, you should consult an attorney. An attorney can help you to file a charge of discrimination with the the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and take your matter before a federal court if necessary. Don’t put up with sexual harassment. If your attempts to resolve sexual harassment on your own have been unsuccessful, and the justice system is your only recourse, call James Radford at Parks, Chesin & Walbert, P.C., at (404) 873 8000.