Former Northwestern football coach Pat Fitzgerald is suing the school for $130 million, saying his alma mater wrongfully fired him in the wake of a hazing and abuse scandal that has engulfed the athletic department.
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Pat Fitzgerald suing Northwestern for $130M for wrongful termination
Former Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald filed a wrongful termination lawsuit Thursday against the university and president Michael Schill, in which he is seeking in excess of $130 million for lost earnings as well as reputational and punitive damages.
Fitzgerald alleges Northwestern unlawfully fired him for cause July 10, three days after announcing a two-week suspension as part of corrective measures from a university-commissioned hazing investigation into the program. Northwestern's investigation, led by attorney Maggie Hickey, found that while claims of hazing from a former player were largely corroborated, there was not sufficient evidence Fitzgerald and other coaches and staff had knowledge of the incidents.
Attorney Dan Webb, who filed the lawsuit, said Northwestern fired Fitzgerald based on "no new facts, no new developments whatsoever, zero." Schill said July 8, hours after The Daily Northwestern reported details of the hazing allegations from the former player, that he "may have erred" with the initial discipline for Fitzgerald. Schill fired Fitzgerald two days later.
Webb said Fitzgerald and Northwestern reached an "oral agreement" before the two-week suspension was announced that the coach would face no further discipline from the university.
"The fact that he was terminated based on no rational reasons or facts whatsoever, the fact that they've gone out and destroyed his reputation as one of the best football coaches in America, based on no legitimate reason or evidence, is disgraceful," said Webb, a former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois who now serves as co-executive chairman of the Winston & Strawn law firm. "It's despicable conduct on behalf of Northwestern. My client and his family are entitled to their day in court for justice."
