Relatives of an 8-year-old girl who are suing a private Chatsworth school, alleging sexual misconduct on the part of older students, must arbitrate their claims, school attorneys state in new court papers.
The plaintiff is a student at Sierra Canyon School and her parents contend she was the victim of what other pupils have dubbed a “kissing club” in which the girl, identified only as E.K., was assailed in school restrooms.
However, school lawyers state in pleadings filed Thursday with Chatsworth Superior Court Judge David B. Gelfound in advance of a May 20 hearing that the girl’s parents signed a February 2023 enrollment agreement containing a sweeping arbitration clause that pertains to not only the plaintiff’s academics, but also “extracurricular activities” and “any disciplinary actions against student or parent.”
Despite the arbitration clause, the parents brought the suit instead, the Sierra Canyon attorneys further state in their court papers while also asking that the case be put on hold pending the outcome of the arbitration.
Richard Shapiro, Sierra Canyon’s CFO, states in a sworn declaration that the girl’s parents never said they did not understand the arbitration agreement or that they found it unfair or were forced to sign it under duress.
According to the suit, the plaintiff was ” repeatedly harassed and bullied by older students” and the harassment ranged from name-calling to peeking through the bathroom stall while E.K. used the restroom.
“As a result of the bullying, E.K. was afraid to use the bathroom,” according to the suit.
The “kissing club” consisted of both 7- and 8-year-old girls and two of the older girls pressured, intimidated and bullied the younger ones to join, including E.K., the suit alleges.
“E.K. was pressured into the group to kiss the others in the bathroom,” the suit alleges.
Soon thereafter, E.K. was forced by the older girls to kiss and touch their private parts, the suit further contends.
Some of the acts were recorded on student phones and a teacher who took one of the devices sent the images to herself and showed them to other staff members, potentially in violation of the law, the suit states.
The suit’s allegations include negligence and both intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress. The suit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.
But according to the school’s attorneys’ court papers, the lawsuit acknowledges that the alleged “kissing club” misconduct was discovered when two of the students were found kissing in the bathroom and recording the act on their phone.
“Upon learning of the incident, Sierra immediately notified the parents and law enforcement of the children’s behavior,” the Sierra Canyon lawyers state in their pleadings.