Oak Hill mediation is failing. Here’s what could happen next

Mediation in the Oak Hill Country Club lawsuit is going so well that the parties in the litigation can’t even agree on what’s happening in mediation.

Should mediation fail, the legal skirmish engulfing the country club could cost its members hundreds of thousands of dollars or more, especially if it goes to trial.

Court records show that a recent mediated attempt at settlement apparently failed. A letter from an attorney for the Oak Hill members suing the club and its board says that lawyers for the opposition “abruptly ended mediation and asked to go to trial.”

“Mediation having hardly commenced, Petitioners were optimistic that the parties’ highly capable mediator would successfully resolve the case quickly, without further expense and public spectacle,” wrote Kelly Foss, the lawyer for the petitioners (those suing Oak Hill), in the May 13 letter to state Supreme Court Justice Daniel Doyle.

“Petitioners sincerely hope that a majority of the Board reconsiders and decides to reopen mediation,” she wrote.

In a court filing Thursday, May 15, Jerauld Brydges, the attorney for the club, said that Foss’ letter misrepresented what happened at the recent mediation session and also breached confidentiality about the sessions.

The lawyers for Oak Hill ― the “respondents” in legal parlance ― did not abruptly end the mediation but instead were ready to follow the court orders and plan possible hearing dates, Brydges wrote.

“Unfortunately, correcting the public record would require respondents to delve into the particulars of the mediation and violate their confidentiality obligations, something that they ― unlike petitioner ― are unwilling to do,” he wrote.

Foss said in an email to the Democrat and Chronicle that the topics in her letter were not a violation of confidentiality agreements with mediation.

“Although Petitioners would much prefer to resolve the case out of court, we will take the case to trial if Respondents insist,” she wrote.

Brydges declined to comment beyond the court filings.

Controversy consuming life at Oak Hill Country Club

Internal Oak Hill correspondence, shared with the Democrat and Chronicle by members who are not party to the litigation, shows that the legal entanglement has caused a growing schism among the members. And some are chafing at the possibility of shouldering what are swelling legal fees.

There appears to be no public evidence that the imbroglio has tainted the club’s image in the larger golf world circles, but some members do worry that a continued legal battle could do just that.

Eugene Baldino contends in the lawsuit that he was illegally ousted from the board last year after questioning the use of Oak Hill funds. Among his issues was a question of whether a holiday fund built on member contributions was filtered more to mid-level employees and others than the lower-wage workers the fund was intended to help.

An internal investigation determined that Baldino had harassed and bullied an Oak Hill worker, Hanna Halpin, after he was upset with an inability to seat other members for dinner at the club. That was the second incident, the investigation determined, in which Baldino had been abusive with a club worker.

However, Halpin is also suing the club, alleging that the internal investigation was likely designed to oust Baldino and that her interaction with him was misportrayed. He was angry, she alleges, but not abusive nor did he harass her.

Baldino is joined by other members in his lawsuit, which was filed in October.

Justice Doyle has attempted to bring the parties together for a mediated settlement, records show.

In her letter, Foss suggests several court dates in September for a trial, dates originally proposed by Doyle. There would be depositions beforehand.

An insurer for Oak Hill has declined to cover the club’s expenses for the lawsuit from Baldino, saying that its policy excludes internecine litigation between board members.

— Gary Craig is a veteran courts and criminal justice reporter for the Democrat and Chronicle.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Oak Hill mediation is failing. Here’s what could happen next