USC suffered a humiliating defeat on the gridiron at the hands of Notre Dame this weekend, but the Trojans scored a big football win in court.
A judge Tuesday dismissed former USC football coach Steve Sarkisian’s lawsuit concerning his October 2015 firing over alcoholism issues, but the dispute will remain before an arbitrator.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge John Doyle said the action will save the parties legal fees by not having to give the court periodic updates. He said most binding arbitration cases never come back to court anyway.
“These arbitration cases go on forever,” Doyle said. “They last longer than Superior Court cases frequently.”
The two sides agreed to binding arbitration in March 2016.
Sarkisian, 43, filed suit in December 2015. His allegations included breach of contract, discrimination based on disability, failure to accommodate him for his disability and retaliation.
Sarkisian’s court papers stated he was owed at least $12.6 million under his head coach contract and a marketing agreement. He held the job from December 2013 until October 2015.
USC General Counsel Carol Mauch Amir said previously that the bulk of Sarkisian’s allegations were “patently untrue.”
Sarkisian, who was head coach at the University of Washington before being hired by USC, was fired one day after he was placed on indefinite leave by the university amid rumors of continuing troubles with alcohol.
Sarkisian’s struggles became public during USC’s annual “Salute to Troy” preseason pep rally in August 2015, when the seemingly intoxicated coach slurred his words during a speech to the crowd, criticizing several opposing teams and used an expletive before uttering the USC rally call, “Fight On.”
Sarkisian publicly apologized the next day, saying without elaboration that his behavior resulted from mixing alcohol and medication.
Sarkisian is currently the offensive coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons.
–City News Service