Attorneys defending two fired school employees have objected to delaying the $7 million lawsuit until arbitrations have been completed. Frank Mondano of Belliro & Mondano, representing Charles E. Coughlin Jr. and Stavroula Bouris, dismissed in August 2007, filed a motion in US District Court in Boston on March 30.

Among the arguments seeking to prevent a stay of the lawsuit until arbitrations are completed:

–  Arbitration rights belong to the plaintiffs and that the defendants, including former Superintendent Nathan Levenson, have no such rights; and

–  "Levenson/Arlington consistently engaged in conduct that unfairly impacted the process and delayed the proceedings."

As to the latter, the motion says: "Perhaps the most unusual obstacle in the process was the pursuit of Levenson when he abruptly left in the middle of the proceedings and resigned as superintendent due to his own misconduct. On August 5, 2008, Levenson left an arbitration session during the lunch break, without explanation, and then resigned two days later.

"Shortly after this episode, it was revealed that Levenson had prepared and then concealed a purportedly contemporaneous 'log of recent events.' The 'log' recited facts central to the case which were in sharp contrast to Levenson's own testimony and the testimony of other witnesses called by Arlington. See Exhibit B.  

[To see Exhibit B, go www.yourarlington.com/pdf/schools/10/suit/exhibitB_33010.pdf.]

"Thereafter, Levenson failed to appear for further examination in connection with his contemporaneous log even after being ordered to appear by the Arbitrator and/or summonsed to do so on two separate occasions (September 10, 2008 and October 7, 2008). Coughlin was forced to file an Application to Enforce Subpoena and Compel Attendance at AAA Hearing in the Suffolk Superior Court ....

"Levenson did finally appear 'voluntarily' on October 30, 2008, two weeks before the Court (Spurlock, J) ordered him to appear pursuant to the Application to Enforce Subpoena ...."

"Throughout the course of the Coughlin arbitration, Levenson/Arlington refused to produce and subsequently manipulated, destroyed, and altered documents. Partial e-mail strings were produced as incriminating without the context of accompanying text. The complete e-mail string would have demonstrated the deceptive and dishonest nature of the claim made and the arguments advanced. In fact, Levenson/Arlington refused to provide access to the original electronic form of documents that were altered and manipulated."

As of March 30, Bouris's arbitration included nine days of hearings over 14 months and remains ongoing with Richard Boulanger, the arbitrator. Boulanger, the arbitrator in the Coughlin case, ruled last Oct. 27 that the former lead technology teacher should be reinstated. That ruling was rejected in March.

The plaintiff's motion March 30 adds that the Superior Court decision overturning the arbitration ruling "made erroneous factual conclusions and assumptions not supportable in the record before it and contrary to the vast body of evidence unknown to it as was developed over 27 days of hearings." It says the plaintiffs have filed a motion for reconsideration.

Full text of motion to prevent stay of lawsuit here: www.yourarlington.com/pdf/schools/10/suit/lawsuit_response33010.pdf

This story was published Saturday, April 3.