Top Plaintiffs' Verdict by Impact: Burns v. San Diego State University

Mary Elizabeth Burns coached the women's basketball program at San Diego State and had the best win record in the school's history until she was fired in 2013.

"I talked to her the day after, and she was stunned," said Edward Chapin of Sanford Heisler LLP. "They accused her of workplace violence because a video showed her at a game hitting the clipboard on the thigh of an assistant sitting next to her on the bench." Burns said the real reason was that she complained regularly about inequitable treatment of women's sports.

"The video and other claims were clearly a pretext. They wanted to get rid of her," Chapin said. "She was demanding and tough. We sought damages to compensate her for the harm caused by the defendants. We held a mediation but there was no meaningful offer, so we went to trial."

Chapin said his client boiled down the situation at the school, where disparate treatment left women's athletic programs underfunded and envious. Burns' pithy phrase: "Boys rule, girls drool."

At trial, Chapin showed that Burns' annual reviews put her at or near the top of school employees. "So we had documentary evidence of high performance. She was an excellent witness, and the people the other side called to say how bad she was did not deliver. They trashed her, and I expected to win. It was a vindication for her."

The award was the second largest Title IX verdict in history, Chapin said. He added that it highlighted the critical role of university faculty in enforcing gender-neutral treatment and buttressed protections for those who speak out. "She was forever negotiating salary raises for her coaches and more resources for her team," Chapin said. "It was costing the school money, so they wanted her gone. The jury saw that."

Coaches like Burns routinely face retaliation for being outspoken. The case was one of the few trials to have employed the California Whistleblower Protection Act in which the plaintiff prevailed, Chapin said. "Burns' success helps clear a path forward for future litigants."

"People have to be able to complain about the small stuff and the big stuff," he added. "We have put athletic departments on notice that they need to pay more attention to women's programs, despite the good ole boy network that often prevails. I'm told that schools are very aware of this verdict."

— John Roemer