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Murtagh v. Emory Univ.

The trial court erred in its imposition of a $15K fine, since it constituted an adjudication of criminal contempt in excess of $500 per act authorized under O.C.G.A. § 15-6-8 subsection 5.

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This appeal is the culmination of a series of lawsuits between James J. Murtagh, M.D., and Emory University dating from 1999, the first of which ended in a settlement agreement. In the course of this subsequent action, which Murtagh filed in 2004, an arbitrator sanctioned Murtagh for violating the settlement agreement, dismissed his remaining claims, and awarded Emory fees and costs. After sanctioning Murtagh for contempt, the trial court confirmed the arbitrator’s decision, issued a permanent injunction against Murtagh, and awarded Emory more than $1 million in damages, fees, and costs. On appeal from this judgment, Murtagh argues that the trial court erred when it confirmed the arbitrator’s award, when it sanctioned him for contempt, and when it awarded Emory its attorney fees. We find that the trial court erred when it imposed a fine of $15,000 for Murtagh’s three acts of contempt, but we affirm in all other respects.

The record shows that after Murtagh was relieved of his position on the Emory faculty in 1999, he filed a variety of actions and complaints in state and federal courts and agencies against Emory, several members of the Emory faculty, and Fulton-Dekalb Hospital Authority raising claims ranging from misappropriation of grant funds to Irish ancestry discrimination. In 2001, the parties entered into a settlement agreement that included non-disparagement, confidentiality, and arbitration provisions. The arbitration provision provided that claims arising out of the subject matter of the settlement agreement would be governed by the Federal Arbitration Act “FAA”, 9 U.S.C. § 1 et seq.

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