TechnologyOne founder and executive chairman, Adrian Di Marco.
The aggrieved former employee of TechnologyOne has put in an application to the High Court in a bid to avoid his $5.2 million court win going to retrial.
Last October, former Victorian manager Behnam Roohizadegan was awarded $5.2 million by the Federal Court following a long-running employment law case concerning unfair dismissal and allegations of bullying.
However, at the beginning of last month, the original judgement in the Federal Court was overturned with the Full Court ordering a retrial.
Roohizadegan is now seeking leave to have the matter heard by the High Court, to overturn the Full Court’s decision, thereby allowing the original decision to stand.
The former manager, who launched a $14.8 million lawsuit against TechnologyOne in 2018, is currently awaiting a decision as to whether the High Court will accept his bid.
Roohizadegan had previously been with TechnologyOne for almost 10 years until he was dismissed on 18 May 2016, at which point he had not been paid incentives due to him since 26 November 2009 as a percentage of the profit before tax performance of the Victoria office.
He was said to have been an “outstanding performer” during his tenure in Victoria but was suffering from issues in his personal life unbeknown to his colleagues.
This led to him suffering extreme stress and anxiety, it was claimed, which was allegedly coupled with specific bullying incidents.
Seeking recompense under the Fair Work Act, Roohizadegan took his former employers to court in January 2018.
Having won $5.2 million from TechnologyOne following a lengthy court case, the software vendor, which had always denied the allegation, launched an appeal, claiming the findings by Justice Duncan Kerr that Roohizadegan’s employment was terminated for a proscribed reason was “erroneous and against the weight of the evidence”.
“This was a senior executive earning close to $1 million per year, who no longer had the confidence of the board and his fellow executives and against whom serious allegations had been raised by staff, and we took action to address in 2016,” TechnologyOne executive chairman Adrian DiMarco told shareholders on 4 August.
"TechnologyOne’s position was validated by the Full Federal Court which unanimously set aside all of the findings made by the trial judge, including findings about Adrian Di Marco, and ordered a retrial on all issues," the vendor said in a statement on 6 September.
"TechnologyOne stands behind this comprehensive judgement and that the company and its people acted within the law."
