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A $25 million class action lawsuit against individuals affiliated with Legacy Christian Academy and Mile Two Church has been dismissed by a judge, pointing to an abuse of process.
The decision made by Justice Rochelle Wempe on June 3 stated that the plaintiffs involved failed to immediately disclose settlement agreements reached with three named defendants.
In 2022, the lawsuit was filed by former students of the school who alleged systemic abuse. It originally named 22 individuals associated with the church and school, including former principals Keith Johnson and Ken Schultz.
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Wempe’s decision said settlement agreements were entered with Stephanie Case (dated Nov. 1, 2023), Fran Thevenot (dated Feb. 24, 2024) and Tracey Johnson (dated Feb. 20, 2024).
The agreements were provided to the remaining defendants on April 8, 2024, and Wempe noted the information was only disclosed after Mile Two independently learned of the discontinuances and made repeated requests for the settlements.
Wempe also wrote in her decision that the settlement agreements changed the course of the case by “causing the settling defendants to switch sides.”
Grant Sharfstein, the lawyer representing the plaintiffs, said a notice of appeal was filed on Monday.
“We believe the court erred in many ways in regard to the action or the decision that was made,” he told 650 CKOM.
Sharfstein said under the circumstances, there was no obligation to share the settlement agreements with the remaining defendants at all.
“There was no prejudice to the defendants in any delay that was caused in providing notice of those settlements to the defendants,” he said.
“The effect of this decision is to deny access to justice and a day in court for all of these proposed class defendants who were harmed over the years by the school.”
Sharfstein said if the case moves forward to be certified as a class action, every student who attended the school and was harmed would be eligible for compensation. He said so far, 115 former students have contacted the legal team.
Sharfstein said he is hoping the appeal is heard by late summer or early fall.
