This
morning attorney Eileen Buholtz, one of the leaders
of the group identifying itself as RPO Community Supporters, announced that she
has filed a new petition with the New York State Supreme Court again questioning the legality of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra’s annual
meeting, which took place on January 23, 2013.
The new petition criticizes the
RPO for not announcing the meeting to its full membership constituency
(specifically referencing contributors to the Rochester Philharmonic Youth
Orchestra), improperly defining its membership term, failing to recognize
write-in ballots for board members at the meeting, and raises other issues. Buholtz is asking the court to rule the results of the
January 23 board election null and void, and to task the RPO with holding a new
meeting to elect board member.
This
is the second petition filed by Buholtz; an earlier
petition was dismissed by Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Fisher last month.
The
RPO Board of Directors responded to the new petition with the following
statement:
“The
Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) has learned that Ms. Eileen Buholtz has filed another suit against it. The RPO is
pleased that the court has ruled in its favor regarding two prior legal suits
and we are confident the court will continue to do so. It is a shame, however,
that the RPO needs to continue to redirect precious resources to defend itself
against unfounded claims for a third time.
“The RPO is looking forward with optimism and is encouraged
by the audience support the orchestra has received in the past three months,
with all Philharmonic and Pops performances exceeding goal for single ticket
sales.”
This article appears in Feb 20-26, 2013.
