DETROIT — DETROIT — The University of Michigan paid nearly $200,000 to settle a lawsuit accusing a top university official of wrongly laying off an employee partly because he chose to retain a female researcher with whom he allegedly had an inappropriate relationship.
The agreement between the university and Martin Philbert was released Monday after The Detroit News filed a Freedom of Information Act request.
It shows that a 2004 lawsuit was settled when Philbert was an associate professor in the university's School of Public Health.
Philbert is now the provost and executive vice president for academic affairs. He joined the University of Michigan faculty in 1995.
Philbert was placed on paid leave Jan. 21. President Mark Schlissel announced the action a day later in an email message to all faculty, staff and students on the Ann Arbor campus. He said he would appoint an acting provost in the coming days.
The president said in his message, "We take allegations of sexual misconduct very seriously, and our policy is clear: Sexual misconduct will not be tolerated in the University of Michigan community.”
Schlissel said the university received several allegations of sexual misconduct by Philbert between Jan. 16-17 and launched an internal investigation. An outside law firm has been hired to look into the claim.
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