Judge: Bemer broke deal with plaintiff in sexual misconduct case by withholding money over publicity

Apr. 26—WATERBURY — Glastonbury businessman Bruce J. Bemer broke his settlement agreement with a man who sued him over sexual misconduct allegations by refusing to pay half the agreed amount after the man's then-lawyer publicized the settlement despite a confidentiality provision, a judge ruled this month.

The plaintiff, identified by a pseudonym in his original sex-related lawsuit against Bemer, in the more recent suits has attempted to collect the second half of the settlement, either from Bemer or from Kevin C. Ferry, the lawyer who represented him in the original suit and publicized the settlement.

Two other men who were represented by Ferry in the same sexual-misconduct suit have filed similar lawsuits against Bemer and Ferry after Bemer also withheld half their settlement payments. Those cases have yet to be decided.

The case decided April 11 by Judge Barbara N. Bellis in state Superior Court in Waterbury involves Bemer's 2019 agreement to pay the plaintiff $425,000, according to a court document filed by his new lawyer in 2020, which is still available in online state judicial records. Records of the man's current lawsuits against Bemer and Ferry do not contain the settlement amount.

Bemer paid the first half of the $425,000 several weeks after the October 2019 signing of the settlement agreement, court records show. The other half was due by April 30, 2020.

The agreement also said, "The fact of this settlement and the terms of this Settlement Agreement are confidential," according to a statement of facts agreed on by the two sides in the current suit. The parties also agreed not to make "any disparaging statements" about each other, according to the statement.

In January 2020, Ferry published an article on his firm's website saying settlements had been reached in 15 lawsuits alleging that Bemer had sexually abused young men, including three men represented by Ferry's firm, according to the statement.

"The amounts and terms remain confidential," the website article said. "However, each victim can feel some satisfaction that Bruce Bemer has been punished criminally and compensated his victims."

The criminal punishment Ferry mentioned was a 10-year prison sentence for a conviction on human-trafficking related charges that later was reversed by the state Supreme Court.

Ferry put a link to his article on his firm's Facebook page, with a picture of Bemer under text reading: "A victim of sexual assault who was a minor when assaulted has the right to proceed under a fictitious name to avoid public exposure. The only person who should be ashamed is the creepy looking guy below. Call us if this man abused you. We will make it right."

After Bemer and his lawyers discovered those posts, they refused to pay the second half of the settlement, although they did put the money in "a separate interest-bearing account," where it has remained ever since, according to the statement of facts.

Bemer's rationale for withholding the money was that Ferry had broken the confidentiality and non-disparagement provisions of the settlement agreement.

The plaintiff subsequently sued Bemer, alleging breach of contract, and Ferry, alleging attorney malpractice.

Bellis ruled that Ferry, although he was involved in the settlement as an attorney, was not a party to the agreement, which was between Bemer and the plaintiff.

Connecticut courts have ruled that the acts of an attorney generally are considered acts of the client "when they are performed in furtherance of the business for which the attorney has been retained," Bellis wrote.

But she added that the facts agreed on by the two sides contained no evidence as to whether Ferry was acting in furtherance of the business for which the plaintiff had retained him when he published the internet posts. As a result, she concluded, Bemer had failed to prove that Ferry was acting as the plaintiff's agent, which would be required for a finding that Ferry's actions constituted a violation of the agreement by the plaintiff.

Bemer's refusal to pay the second half of the settlement "was not excused by the actions of Attorney Ferry," she wrote.

Brendon P. Levesque, one of the lawyers representing Bemer in the case, said they intend to file an appeal of the decision next week.

Ferry said the decision "wasn't surprising. What is sad is that it took years to get here." Based on conversations he has had, Ferry said, the decision "will likely lead to a global resolution of all of this, at least it should."

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