Judge to consider violinist's claim against symphony

Developments continue in the ongoing lawsuit of violinist Peter Kaman against his employer, the Seattle Symphony Orchestra.

Since the dismissal late last month of two of Kaman's three claims against the symphony, the Seattle Symphony asked the court to dismiss the final claim as well.

While that motion was not granted immediately, on Tuesday King County Superior Court Judge Catherine Shaffer agreed to hear arguments about whether the final claim — that the orchestra inflicted emotional distress on Kaman — should be allowed to go forward.

If Kaman's emotional-distress lawsuit does proceed, a trial date has been set for Jan. 7.

In an e-mail, orchestra spokeswoman Rosalie Contreras summed up the latest development: "The Symphony invited to file an additional motion to address any issues remaining in the lawsuit. The Symphony intends to file such a motion shortly. At the summary judgment hearing, the judge will formally consider whether Mr. Kaman may, in fact, properly assert his remaining claim and, if so, whether it has merit. We believe it should be dismissed."

The summary judgment hearing has not yet been scheduled.

Kaman, a member of the Seattle Symphony's first-violin section since 1981, suffers from an anxiety disorder. His lawsuit, filed in February 2006 and detailing his long-standing grievances with his treatment in the orchestra, is expected to be a substantial portion of an upcoming New York Times story on the Seattle Symphony, scheduled to appear Sunday.

Melinda Bargreen: mbargreen@seattletimes.com