St Andrew's College and Dr Jacquie Campbell, who was sacked two months ago as principal of its fee-paying south Dublin junior school, have settled legal proceedings over what she claimed had been an unfair dismissal.
Following inter-party talks in the Circuit Civil Court Judge Martin Nolan, made the compromise agreement an order of his court whereby Dr Campbell withdrew her application under the “whistleblowers” Protected Disclosures Act.
In return, the consent order granted Dr Campbell a direction for taxation of her legal costs, together with a certificate for her senior counsel, Martin Hayden.
The settlement contains strict terms of confidentiality but an acceptance to pay a complainant’s costs generally means the plaintiff has walked away with an acceptable financial package.
Prestigious position
It is believed the agreement does not contain any stipulation of reinstatement of Dr Campbell, as she had sought, to her old job which until now has been maintained on a stand-in basis by another teacher.
Dr Campbell had earlier told the court in a sworn statement that she was head of the junior fee-paying primary school which has 28 teachers and had been appointed 11 years ago to what she described as a prestigious position carrying a significant remuneration package.
She challenged what she described as a purported and unlawful decision of the college to terminate her position and alleged it was clearly and inextricably linked to her complaints to the principal of the college and the board of governors.
Dr Campbell claimed she had not been given any support in dealing with “one particularly difficult family” in the school and had no doubt her dismissal was a direct result of her having made protected disclosures under the Act.
Mr Hayden said it was the college’s position that the application before the court was not a protected disclosure matter and nothing that Dr Campbell had said could possibly be a protected disclosure under the Act.