San Diego Trial Team Wins Defense Verdict For The County of San Diego
A trial team of Quarles & Brady Labor & Employment attorneys, led by partners Corrie Klekowski and George Howard, on December 15, 2023, obtained a unanimous defense verdict from a federal jury, on behalf of our client the County of San Diego.
The nine-person jury rejected claims by the county’s former chief medical officer, Dr. Nicholas Yphantides, that he was unlawfully fired in March 2021 due to his claimed disability. Klekowski and Howard were supported during the seven day trial by Senior Deputy County Counsel Frances Rogers and Assistant County Counsel Erica Cortez, both of the Office of the San Diego County Counsel, as well as by several Quarles associates and paralegals.
Yphantides claimed he was discriminated against for his bipolar disorder and that the county failed to engage in an interactive process with him to determine a reasonable accommodation. However, the jury sided with the county, which contended he was fired due to inappropriate behavior. The jury found the county did not discriminate against Yphantides or violate California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act or other state laws when it fired him in 2021.