OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — The attorney for embattled Ottawa County Health Officer Adeline Hambley has gone to the courts to enforce what she believes was a final settlement agreement between Hambley and Ottawa County commissioners.
According to documentation and communications filed by Hambley's attorney, Sarah Howard, with 20th Circuit Court Judge Jenny McNeill, the terms of a tentative agreement she discussed with the county included the following:
- $4 million paid to Hambley
- Hambley's resignation as health officer as of Dec. 15, at the latest
- Deputy Health Officer Marcia Mansaray being placed on administrative leave two days after the agreement's signing, with the possibility for one year severance pay before leaving the post on Jan. 31, 2024
- A dismissal of all pending litigation between the parties
- A continuation of liability coverage for Hambley and Mansaray for official actions taken during their time in the posts
Commissioners were set to finalize the settlement with Hambley at their Nov. 14 meeting after accepting their legal counsel's recommendation regarding litigation and settlement activities on Nov. 6.
No agreement was discussed further, however, in their Nov. 14 meeting. Instead, commissioners returned to closed session for an additional six hours to continue settlement discussions.
In her brief, Howard seeks to have the court enforce the agreement, alleging that commissioners are backing out on their deal.
"A majority of the full Board, including all individual Defendants, voted for the agreement in an open session of the meeting, just prior to recessing the meeting for that day," Howard alleged in her filing. "After entering into the agreement, however, Defendants contracted a case of buyer’s remorse."
"Defendants now argue that there was never a binding agreement in the first place," Howard continued. "That is legally incorrect, however. The November 6 Agreement was in writing and subscribed by Defendants’ attorney, and thus meets the standards set forth for enforceable settlement agreements under Michigan Court Rule 2.507(G)."
Following the filing, county legal counsel Dave Kallman pushed back against claims made in the motion.
"There's nothing to back out of," Kallman told 13 ON YOUR SIDE. "Everything we sent to Ms. Howard - and it wasn't that much, it was a few emails - said 'tentative' settlement proposals. There were a lot of wildly different proposals that were on the table beyond just this $4 million thing."
Though commissioners' Nov. 6 vote did not elaborate on what counsel's recommendation was, Kallman said it was not tied to a recommendation for a specific deal.
"Corporate counsel never made a recommendation for any settlement to be accepted or voted on by the board ever, in all these closed sessions in the last few weeks," Kallman said. "These are settlement discussions. It's a process."
Kallman said legal counsel would be filing a response next week.
The Board of Commissioners is set to reconvene next on the topic on Nov. 28 at 1:30 p.m.
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