BY KEITH LACEY
A former consultant with the Sudbury Regional Hospital has filed a $1.2 million civil lawsuit against the hospital.
Rick Lees, whose contracts with the hospital were terminated in the fall of 2001, is claiming $500,000 in punitive damages for breach of contract. He is seeking additional damages for other allegations relating to his work with the hospital.
As with all civil lawsuits, the allegations made in a statement of claim have not been proven. The filing of a statement of claim is simply the first step in the legal process to bring action against another party.
Lees, who was hired as a consultant and was never an employee, was responsible for the delivery of the Great Game of Life and consulting services for organizational development within the hospital.
The Great Game of Life was a morale and team-building exercise that saw employees gather for retreats at property owned by Lees on a lake near Hagar. Part of the team training involved traversing across rope courses between towers erected on the property.
Lees was terminated from his contracts after he could not prove his educational credentials listed on
his resume.
Viviane Lapointe, spokesperson for the Sudbury Regional Hospital, says the hospital has received the statement of claim from lawyers representing Lees.
?A copy of the statement of claim has been forwarded to our insurer to defend this action,? said Lapointe.
The hospital?s position is Lees was paid all money he was owed and this civil action has no merit, said Lapointe.
?The hospital believes it has paid all outstanding amounts in relation to the contracts involving Mr. Lees,? said Lapointe. ?Upon terminating the contracts with Mr. Lees, we reviewed all of the money we believe we owed him and it?s our position he has been paid in full.?
The hospital paid Lees just under $115,000 when it terminated the contracts and this is identified in his civil action against the hospital, said Lapointe. It?s the hospital?s position all contracts with Lees were terminated ?with cause,? said Lapointe.
?When questions were raised about his credentials, the hospital asked Mr. Lees to provide proof of his credentials and we gave him a timetable to do so,? she said. ?When he was unable to provide that information in the time we gave him, the hospital then took steps to terminate our contracts with him.?
