Playford Council settles legal dispute with former CEO Mal Hemmerling
Playford Council, which is at the centre of anti-corruption inquiry, has ended the bitter legal dispute with the CEO it sacked.
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A bitter legal dispute between an embattled northern suburbs council and its former highly paid boss has settled.
Mal Hemmerling, 73, was suing Playford Council in the Supreme Court after he was sacked as its $372,978-a-year CEO in December last year.
The former Grand Prix supremo was dismissed for alleged repeated misconduct, including sexual harassment — claims he denied.
The state’s then-highest-paid council boss launched a judicial review, and an unfair dismissal claim, against his former employer over claims of a botched workplace safety inquiry. He also threatened to sue deputy mayor Marilyn Baker for defamation.
The council had alleged he was sacked after behaving inappropriately towards female staff.
After inquiries from The Advertiser, the parties issued a joint statement on Tuesday night. “The dispute … has resolved on a commercial basis to avoid protracted litigation,” the statement read.
Neither party would comment further while the terms remain secret.
The council is currently the subject of an inquiry led by the state’s anti-corruption watchdog.
Deputy Independent Commissioner Against Corruption Michael Riches has revealed how he was evaluating Playford Council’s “practices, policies and procedures”.
The investigation was launched after he considered “a number of complaints and reports” made to the Office for Public Integrity.
The announcement comes after a series of The Advertiser reports about problems engulfing the council.
In a rare public statement announcing the review in April, Mr Riches said it could be necessary to widen the scope if further information was received.
It will also investigate practices, policies and procedures with:
HUMAN resource management
FINANCIAL controls
INFORMATION management
THE availability and use of resources by public officers and whether it provides a “sufficient safeguard to minimise (its) misuse.
He said he hoped his report would be tabled in state parliament by the end of the year.
Dr Hemmerling has since launched his own consultancy business with former council colleagues.