The judge who became an international symbol of runaway litigation after he sued a Korean dry cleaners for $54 million over a pair of pants will be notified today that he has been removed from the bench, sources close to the process said late Monday.
The city commission overseeing the case of Administrative Law Judge Roy Pearson voted to give Pearson a letter formally advising him that he will not be reappointed to the bench, ending a protracted review process.
Pearson, 57, could not be reached for comment. He had earlier hinted that he would sue the District if he were removed.
The controversial Pearson lost his lawsuit against the dry cleaners in late June.
Since then, he has fought a desperate battle to keep his seat on the bench. He was up for a 10-year appointment. He has remained on the city payroll, with a salary of $100,000, while his case played out.
Earlier this month, Pearson made an impassioned plea to keep his job, arguing that bringing the controversial suit was a constitutional right. He also said that he should be considered a whistle blower for unrelated activities in which he said he sought to expose corruption inside the D.C. Office of Hearings, a department that rules on disputes between city agencies and residents or businesses.
He has had a history of zealous legal pursuits.
Before he became a D.C. judge two years ago, Pearson was unemployed after working as legal aid lawyer for 24 years. He worked on one tenant lawsuit for 18 years, appealing the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, according to testimony during his case against the dry cleaners.
In 2005, in his divorce suit, Virginia courts ordered him to pay his ex-wife, also a lawyer, $12,000 for “creating unnecessary litigation” and threatening her and her attorney with disbarment.
At the time of the ruling, he had no steady job, no bank account and less than $2,000 in cash. The owners of the Custom Cleaners, Jin Nam Chung and Soo Chung, closed the business, citing the stress of the case.
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