Dartmouth Health in Lebanon, N.H. is being asked to pay more than $2 million in legal fees and interest after a Windsor County fertility doctor successfully sued over her disability discrimination firing in 2017.
A federal court jury in Burlington awarded $1 million in economic damages to Dr. Misty Blanchette Porter of Norwich on April 10 for lost income and expenses. The jury also said Porter was entitled to an additional $125,000 in non-economic damages for the loss of enjoyment in life, mental anguish or pain and suffering.
Now Porter’s lawyers have filed to recover their lawsuit-related costs in the contentious legal battle which has ricocheted through Federal District Court in Vermont and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York City over the past eight years.
The request is for $1,742,650 in legal fees to be split between the law firms of Vitt & Nunan in Norwich and Langrock Sperry & Wool in Burlington, who represent the doctor. The request is under the Vermont Fair Employment Practices Act.
Dartmouth Health has not filed a written response to the request by Dr. Porter, who was laid off June 3, 2017.
Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, Dartmouth Hitchcock Clinic, Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital and Dartmouth Hitchcock Health were all named as defendants in the civil lawsuit filed in October 2017. They are known collectively as “Dartmouth Health,” court papers said.
In a separate new filing, the lawyers for Dr. Porter want Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle also to assess $341,429 in pre-judgement interest for the $1 million verdict for economic damages.
The request is 1 percent per month (12 percent per year) as allowed by the Vermont statutory rate, attorney Geoffrey J. Vitt wrote.
The defense team, headed locally by Burlington attorney Tristram J. Coffin, has filed a 15-page objection to the request for interest and asks for discretion.
Judge Doyle provided both sides until Tuesday May 27 to file any post-trial motions and appeals.
For more on this, please see our May 15 edition of the Vermont Standard.
