When the daughter of a former head of Florida private preparatory school took to Facebook and boasted about her dad’s $80,000 discrimination settlement, he violated the confidentiality agreement the parties settled on.
Due to this “boasting,” 69-year-old Patrick Snay will no longer receive the $80,000 check from Gulliver Preparatory School in Miami.
He filed the discrimination suit against the school after the 2010-11 contract was allowed to lapse. Snay and the school came to an agreement in November 2011 where he’d receive $10,000 in back pay and $80,000 as well. Gulliver Schools agreed to pay Snay’s lawyer $60,000.
However, before everything could be finalized, Snay’s daughter boasted about the win against the school, saying it was paying for her European vacation. The message she wrote went out to her 1,200 Facebook followers including several former and present Gulliver students. When word spread about the post, it got back to school officials.
Not long afterward, Snay’s lawyers were sent a letter from Gulliver Schools, claiming Snay violated the agreement and wouldn’t be getting the $80,000. According to the agreement, Snay and his wife were not permitted to talk to people about the agreement except with attorneys and professional advisors.
The 69-year-old Snay filed a motion that would enforce the settlement, and the Circuit Court ruled in his favor.
The school filed a motion to appeal, and a hearing was held to learn if the daughter’s post violated that agreement Snay had.
Snay said his daughter knew about the meditation process but didn’t understand the full process of it and what it entailed. According to Snay, his daughter suffered from mental anguish over issues that happened while she was a Gulliver student. He said his daughter didn’t know about the confidentiality agreement but felt she needed to know something.
The Third District Court of Appeal in Florida ruled that in favor of the school, overturning the Circuit Court ruling. According to the court, Snay had violated that part of the contract when he told his daughter about the settlement. The Gulliver community wanted to keep the fact mum that Snay was successful with his discrimination and retaliation lawsuit against the school.
The Court said Snay breached the terms of the agreement and ruled in favor of the school.
source [1]