Retaliation for race discrimination complaint results in $2.1 million jury verdict.
Dr. Robert Roswick worked as a family practice physician at Mid Dakota Clinic in Bismarck, North Dakota. He felt that Mid Dakota’s CEO and Board of Directors were racially discriminating against an Indian-American colleague of his by pushing forward with termination without allowing the colleague the same due process rights afforded to other shareholders at the Clinic.
So Dr. Roswick took action. He emailed his fellow shareholders, gave them the factual basis as to why he believed the bylaws weren’t being followed, and told them he believed that their colleague was a victim of racism. Mid Dakota’s CEO and Board promptly retaliated: they suspended Dr. Roswick’s employment and moved for his termination. At his termination meeting, Board members openly told shareholders that “The reason we are here today is that Dr. Roswick raised this complaint of discrimination and made that known.” The shareholders approved Dr. Roswick’s termination from Mid Dakota.
We took this case to trial and originally won a $1.2 million verdict.
The Court has since ruled on both parties’ post-trial motions, and ultimately raised the award to $2.1 million.
After trial, Mid Dakota moved the Court to reverse the jury’s verdict as a matter of law, reduce the amount of the jury’s verdict, and/or grant a new trial. The judge denied all 3 motions.
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We moved the Court to add on to the jury’s verdict by awarding Dr. Roswick front pay, attorney fees, hard costs, and interest. The Court issued its Order on November 18, 2019, and awarded Dr. Roswick $430,000 in front pay, $288,987 in attorney fees, $79,413 in hard costs, and $96,108 in interest, bringing his total award to over $2.1 million.
We were honored to represent Dr. Roswick in his 4 year fight with Mid Dakota Clinic after his 2015 termination.
The reported case results are not intended to create unjustified expectations. Every case involves unique facts and circumstances. Past results do not guarantee or predict future outcomes.
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