Philadelphia Art Museum wins bid to move Sasha Suda lawsuit to arbitration
Suda, who filed the lawsuit against the museum in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas in November, had sought a jury trial.
A Pennsylvania judge has ruled in favor of the Philadelphia Art Museum, granting its request to have a lawsuit filed by former director Sasha Suda heard in arbitration, which typically keeps disputes out of public courtrooms, limits discovery and prevents jury trials.
Suda filed the lawsuit against the museum in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas in November, accusing the museum of firing her “without a valid basis” after a controversial rebrand.
Her lawsuit accused a faction of the museum’s board of manufacturing pretextual grounds for her dismissal by hiring a law firm to conduct a “sham investigation” amid attempts to falsely accuse her of using museum funds for personal gain.
Ousted Philadelphia Museum of Art director seeks jury trial
A new court filing challenges the museum’s bid to force arbitration, arguing the dispute belongs in open court under the terms of Suda’s contract.
Adam Schrader
She is seeking damages “in an amount to be proven at trial” that would likely include two years of severance pay as promised in her contract, lost benefits, harm to reputation, and other financial losses caused by her alleged wrongful termination.
The Philadelphia Art Museum fired back at Suda in court later that month. It said that its board voted 12-0, with one abstention, on October 27 to fire Suda after “reviewing evidence” that she allegedly misappropriated funds and “lied to cover up her theft.”
The museum’s board also pushed for the case to be heard in arbitration, claiming Suda’s allegations still fall under her contract’s arbitration clause. Around the same time, the museum named her replacement as Daniel Weiss, the former president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Philadelphia Art Museum names Sasha Suda’s replacement
The filing came amid Sasha Suda’s lawsuit against the museum, accusing the board of firing her “without a valid basis.”
Adam Schrader
Suda in December then asked the judge to keep her case in court, where she sought a jury trial. She argued that her employment contract explicitly allows court litigation, rather than private arbitration, when the museum violates its non-disparagement obligations.
At the time, her lawyers characterized the museum’s arbitration bid as an attempt to “keep its wrongdoing out of public view.”
Judge Michael E. Erdos on Friday sided with the museum, ruling in favor of arbitration instead of allowing the case to progress in open court.
In a statement to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the museum said the judge’s ruling affirmed “the requirement to arbitrate as previously agreed to in the employment agreement.”
The museum called it “the best use of the resources of all, including the court’s,” and said it would now return to focusing on its mission.
Philadelphia Art Museum names Sasha Suda’s replacement
The filing came amid Sasha Suda’s lawsuit against the museum, accusing the board of firing her “without a valid basis.”
Adam Schrader
“The court’s procedural, one-sentence decision requiring arbitration has no relevance to the outcome of this case,” Luke Nikas, Suda’s lawyer, told the newspaper.
“We are not surprised that the museum wants to hide its illegal conduct in a confidential arbitration, but we will hold the museum accountable wherever the case is heard.“
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