Texas Southmost College is appealing a recent ruling by a higher court ordering the college pay ousted President Lily Tercero nearly $1 million for breach of contract and attorney fees.
In a final judgment issued by U.S. District Fernando Rodriguez Jr. he ordered that Tercero recover $674,878.66 on her cause of action for breach of contract, $235,290.26 in attorney fees and $24,579.41 in conditional attorney fees.
A federal jury in November 2018 awarded Tercero more than $13 million in damages for being fired during a sham termination hearing.
However, the trial court subsequently vacated the jury’s verdict on her breach-of-contract claims and reduced the damages award for her procedural due-process claim to $1. Tercero appealed the decision and was awarded nearly $1 million.
The Brownsville Herald has reached out to attorney’s representing TSC and is awaiting comment.
Tercero sued the college after it fired her in September 2016 for deliberately and recklessly failing to obtain windstorm insurance with board approval in compliance with state law; for allowing TSC checks to be stamped with signatures of people who were no longer trustees; for failing to timely search and fill the position of vice president for finance and administration; for failing to inform the board of the ailing nursing program and its pending suspension; for refusing a board member’s request that he personally sign and review checks in the amount of $10,000 or more and for not complying with a request for information sought by another member.
Tercero accused the school of pre-determining the outcome of her termination hearing, arguing she never had a fair shot during the public meeting.
