A former executive of Lisa Frank Inc. is suing the Tucson-based girls crafts company, saying she is owed a $2 million severance payment.
Lisa Frank Inc. said in court documents that it never promised $2 million to Rhonda Rowlette, the company's former executive vice president who was discharged in February.
Attorneys for Lisa Frank Inc. could not be reached for comment.
The lawsuit, filed in state court in March and moved to U.S. District Court in Tucson earlier this month, becomes the third recent local case that involves Lisa Frank Inc., or its namesake and majority owner, Lisa Frank.
In September, Frank filed for divorce from James A. Green, who was then the president of Lisa Frank Inc.
Since then, Frank and Green have waged a state court battle for control of the company. Green agreed to step aside as president, and Frank claims the divorce allows her to buy back the 49 percent of company stock that Green owns. That lawsuit and the divorce are still pending.
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Now, the company sees indications that Frank's husband and Rowlette may be working together to form a competitor to Lisa Frank Inc., according to court documents filed by Lisa Frank Inc.
Green is setting up his own office, using Lisa Frank Inc.'s assets, property and trademarked art designs taken without permission from Lisa Frank Inc., the company said in countersuit documents.
Green's attorney, John Iurino, said he cannot comment, because Green has not been served with the lawsuit.
Rowlette's attorney, John Gabroy, said the claims by Lisa Frank Inc. were "frivolous." Gabroy declined to comment further on the case.
Rowlette's lawsuit depicts her as a devoted employee who worked for the company seven days a week, up to 15 hours a day, since her hiring in 1984.
Rowlette's schedule involved "rarely if ever taking a lunch break, sick leave, or holiday leave for over 21 years," according to court documents.
Frank and Green repeatedly promised that if she were to retire or be fired, she would receive $2 million in her bank account and have her home mortgage paid off, according to Rowlette's lawsuit.
During the past 10 years, Lisa Frank Inc. sold more than $550 million in merchandise to retailers such as Wal-Mart and Target, according to court documents filed by Green in Pima County Superior Court. The company began by making stickers and branched into clothing, backpacks and stationery.
The company employs about 80 people in Tucson, according to court filings by Green.