More Fallout Over Miami Dean's Firing: Faculty Senate Unanimously Urges Reinstatement; Vice-Dean Resigns; University Agrees To Meet With Faculty; Dean Claims President Defamed Him

Miami Herald, UM Law School Vice Dean Resigns in Protest Over Law School Dean Firing; Faculty Objects:

Calling the decision by the University of Miami president to fire the law school’s dean as “deeply unfair, unjust and factually misguided,” one of the two vice deans at UM’s School of Law resigned from her administrative role in protest.

In an email sent Tuesday and obtained by the Miami Herald on Thursday, Lili Levi, who has been at UM for 34 years, said she would quit following Dean Anthony Varona’s unexpected termination, which UM President Julio Frenk announced in an email sent to the UM community on Tuesday. Levi, 64, will stay on as a media law professor. ...

Levi’s resignation came the same day that the UM Faculty Senate convened an emergency session Thursday afternoon, unanimously passing a resolution “strongly urging” Frenk to reinstate Varona and “evaluate him according to the processes specified in the Faculty Manual.”

“The firing of Dean Varona without appropriate faculty input and consultation has severely tarnished the university’s local, national, and international reputation,” the resolution read. “Moreover, this decision threatens to negatively impact hiring, recruitment, and accreditation going forward.” ...

The Faculty Senate also endorsed the resolution that the tenured law school faculty members approved earlier this week, in which they called for an urgent meeting with Frenk, UM Provost Jeffrey Duerk and the Board of Trustees’ executive committee to discuss the action.

Three UM sources confirmed to the Herald that the administration has agreed to meet next week with a delegation of law school faculty members.

Karen Sloan (Law.com), Ousted Miami Law Dean Claims University President Defamed Him:

University of Miami Law Dean Anthony Varona fired back Thursday at the campus administrator who ousted him this week, calling the announcement of his departure defamatory.

A letter to university president Julio Frenk from Varona’s attorney, Debra Katz, demanded that Frenk retract his May 25 statement in which he wrote that the law school needs a “dean with the required vision and effectiveness of execution to bring the school to new levels of excellence.” ..

According to Katz’s letter, Varona has been a successful fundraiser since joining the law school in 2019, and has secured $8 million in payments, planned gifts and other pledges despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Katz’s letter does not mention that Varona in 2019 committed $100,000 of his own money to law student scholarships.

ABA Journal, Florida Law Dean Hopes School Will Rescind His Firing; Faculty Resolution Also Supports Him

TaxProf Blog coverage:

• University Of Miami President Fires Tony Varona After Less Than Two Years As Dean; Tenured Faculty Protests Decision; Varona's Lawyer Says He Will Contest The Firing (May 26, 2021)
• Outrage Grows Over Firing Of Tony Verona After Less Than Two Years As Miami Dean. Did Minor Declines In U.S. News Ranking And Bar Passage Rate Play A Role? (May 27, 2021)
• More Fallout Over Miami Dean's Firing: Faculty Senate Unanimously Urges Reinstatement; Vice-Dean Resigns; University Agrees To Meet With Faculty; Dean Claims President Defamed Him (May 28, 2021)
• Miami Law Alumni Slam Firing Of Dean; AALS Section Demands Investigation To Determine Whether Tony Varona Was Targeted Due To His Gay And Hispanic Status (May 29, 2021)
• University Of Miami Faculty Senate Unanimously Condemns Firing Of Dean Tony Varona And Urges His Reinstatement (May 30, 2021)
• SALT Calls For Review Of Dismissal Of University Of Miami Law Dean Tony Varona, 'UM’s First Latinx And Openly Gay Dean' (May 31, 2021)
• Was This Law Dean Fired Because He's Gay? His Supporters Want Answers (June 2, 2021)
• University Of Miami President Doubles Down On Decision To Fire Tony Varona After Less Than Two Years As Dean (June 5, 2021)
• Miami Searches For Interim Dean After Controversial Firing Of Tony Varona, Who Sought To Reduce Overhead Tax Law School Pays To University (June 14, 2021)
• Tony Varona Takes The High Road In His Farewell Message After Being Fired Less Than 2 Years Into His Deanship (June 30, 2021)
• University Of Miami Appoints Acting Law School Dean; Faculty Demands Investigation Into Firing Of Tony Varona (July 1, 2021)
• Sixteen Miami Faculty Demand Answers To Questions Surrounding Firing Of Dean Tony Varona (July 6, 2021)
• Miami Law Community Seeks Answers On Firing Of Tony Varona As Acting Dean Takes Over (July 11, 2021)