Donovan’s reassignment comes with agreement not to sue UH

Links to UH documents

Aug. 11 UH Memo to Jim Donovan

July 16 letter from Donovan’s lawyer

Letter of support from legislators

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In return for his still-to-be-titled job with the Manoa chancellor’s office, former University of Hawaii athletic director Jim Dono­van has agreed not to sue the school and its officials, according a copy of an agreement signed by both parties.

The agreement, which says Dono­van will be paid $211,200 a year under a three-year contract when his current athletic director contract runs out next year, also requires UH to pay his attorney $30,000 "in payment of attorney’s fees incurred in connection with the investigation and related matters."

The document and a pre-emptive letter to UH from the attorney, David Simons, were released to the Star-Advertiser under the state’s open-records law.

After 4 1⁄2 years as athletic director, Donovan was reassigned to the Manoa chancellor’s office Aug. 12, ending a paid indefinite administrative leave that began July 11 in the wake of the Stevie Wonder concert fiasco.

"In exchange," the agreement states, "you agree to and do fully and completely release and hold harmless, the University of Hawaii and all present or past regents, officers, agents, attorneys, predecessors, successors, parents, subsidiaries, divisions and any affiliated entities of the University of Hawaii, including all campuses in the University of Hawaii system, from any and all past and present claims or causes of action of any kind that you have or may have related to your employment with the university including any and all claims relating in any way to the Stevie Wonder concert, your leave and the investigation of that matter. You agree that you have not filed and will not file any form of charge, claim or complaint against the university involving any matter occurring on or prior to the effective date of this memorandum."

The agreement, signed by UH President M.R.C. Greenwood and Manoa Chancellor Tom Apple, came after UH said an external report cleared Dono­van of "wrongdoing" in connection with the Wonder case.

On July 16, five days after Dono­van was put on leave, his attorney charged in a letter to Greenwood and Apple that they had used his client as a "scapegoat … to deflect criticism from yourselves and people who reported to you."

Simons charged that "the truth is, as you know, Mr. Dono­van had little to do with the possible loss to the university of $200,000. Because this matter was embarrassing to both of you, you panicked and acted peremptorily to suspend Jim in order to deflect criticism from yourselves and people who reported to you."

Simons wrote that "by suspending Jim, you falsely made it appear that it was all his fault. Legally, we call that putting someone in a ‘false light’ which is tortious conduct for which Mr. Donovan will seek compensatory and punitive damages from each of you."

Simons contended that "there was no operational reason, need or justification to publicly suspend Mr. Dono­van. The obvious and only reason you publicly suspended him was to deflect criticism toward him and away from both of you and from the people who caused this problem, who are people who report to you, not to Mr. Dono­van, including your general counsel’s office and your fiscal office."

In addition, Simons charged, "you chose to scapegoat Mr. Dono­van rather than appropriately investigating first. You breached UH policy. By not investigating first and, instead, publicly labeling Mr. Dono­van as the culprit, you have denied him his constitutional right to due process and breached clear and established UH policy."

UH memo to Jim Donovan