Adulterer Wins Large Settlement

After having a contract which agreed that he'd resign if his annulment were turned down, this former Columbus coach successfully sued the school after they held him to that point in the contract and asked for his resignation.

It's going to be difficult to enforce increased vigilance on annulments when lay employees can turn around and sue.

Mr. Girsch says he lost his faith in the Church, but it's very clear that litigating on his dismissal when it was part of his contract in the first place shows bad faith on his part and that of the courts as well.

WATERLOO - Former Columbus Catholic High School teacher Tom Girsch has won his lawsuit but lost his faith in the Catholic Church, his attorney said Thursday.

Jurors awarded Girsch, who had taught social studies and coached football at Columbus, a total of $606,380 after about a day of deliberation in his breach of contract suit against Cedar Valley Catholic Schools and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dubuque, following a week and a half of testimony.

The award was higher than the $500,000 Girsch's attorney, Mark Zaiger of Cedar Rapids, had sought.

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