Lawyer asks judge to move school board’s claims to out-of-court arbitration process

A lawyer representing Macon businessman Isaac Culver is asking a judge to order that the Bibb County school board handle out of court its claims against Culver and his company pertaining to an alleged fraudulent 2012 technology deal.

In a legal brief filed Tuesday, Culver’s lawyer argued that former Bibb schools Superintendent Romain Dallemand acted as a representative of the district when he signed a services agreement with Culver and his company to provide “technical project management services” on Sept. 24, 2012.

He contends the contract includes a clause that requires disputes regarding the contract to be handled through arbitration. The contract was witnessed by former school technology director Tom Tourand.

Culver’s attorney also is asking that the arbitration process be used to determine the validity of the services agreement.

The school board filed a multimillion-dollar federal lawsuit late last year against Culver, his company Progressive Consulting Technologies Inc.; Dallemand; Tourand; Comptech Computer Technologies Inc. and its president and CEO, Allen J. Stephen; and Pinnacle/CSG Inc., and its president, Cory McFarlane. Tourand died in July.

Culver, Progressive and Culver’s business partner Dave Carty were indicted on federal fraud charges this summer.

The school board has also filed a legal brief and other documents contending that although Dallemand asked the board to authorize him to negotiate a contract with Progressive, the board did not do so. Instead, board members voted in favor of the school district negotiating the contract.

The agreement was not presented to the board for its consideration and the board didn’t vote to approve it, according to an affidavit from school board member Susan Sipe filed in the case.

Lawyers for the school board argue that the judge must resolve any challenge to the service agreement before making other decisions about arbitration, according to the legal brief.

A separate two-year arbitration battle between the school board and Dallemand was dismissed in March after Dallemand failed to pay outstanding deposits. Dallemand had filed a $10 million claim in February 2015 alleging school board members violated portions of his severance agreement.

This story was originally published August 16, 2017 at 11:51 AM with the headline "Lawyer asks judge to move school board’s claims to out-of-court arbitration process."