Corah v. The Bruss Co.
77 N.E.3d 1038
| Ill. App. Ct. | 2017Background
- Corah, a production supervisor at The Bruss Company, was fired after he refused to redo an Accident Investigation Report (AIR) about coworker Yvette Albea’s band-saw injury; Corah claimed he was told to shift blame from management to the employee.
- AIRs included a "Five Whys" root-cause section; Corah alleged his superiors instructed him to alter the AIR to favor management, and he refused, leading to termination for insubordination.
- Defendant submitted a replacement AIR completed by another supervisor describing the accident (glove caught, finger pulled into blade); defendant’s safety manager testified AIRs were internal and not submitted to OSHA; workers’ compensation benefits for Albea were approved without dispute.
- Corah sued under the Illinois Whistleblower Act (section 20), alleging he refused to participate in activity that would violate the Workers’ Compensation Act and OSHA; he also initially sought emotional distress and punitive damages and alleged OSHA violations.
- The trial court granted summary judgment to defendant on the whistleblower claim (finding Corah did not identify a specific law violated) and earlier dismissed claims for emotional distress and punitive damages; Corah appealed the April 7, 2016 summary-judgment order.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Corah’s refusal to redo the AIR constituted protected whistleblowing under 740 ILCS 174/20 | Corah says he was asked to prepare a false AIR (violating Workers’ Compensation Act and OSHA), so his refusal was protected | Defendant says it asked only for technical detail (root cause); AIR was not false, was internal, and did not violate any statute or regulation | Court: Summary judgment for defendant — Corah failed to identify a law, rule, or regulation that his refusal would have violated |
| Whether defendant interfered with Albea’s workers’ compensation rights (supporting the whistleblower claim) | Corah asserts defendant tried to have Albea misreport the injury and interfered with her care/benefits | Defendant shows Bolinger approved benefits, Baker prepared comp report, Albea recalled no interference; AIR not submitted to agencies | Court: No evidence of interference with Albea’s workers’ comp rights; does not satisfy whistleblower element |
| Whether dismissal of emotional distress and punitive damages (trial court’s earlier orders) is reviewable on this appeal | Corah challenges those dismissals as erroneous | Defendant contends those orders were not included in the notice of appeal, so appellate court lacks jurisdiction | Court: Lacks jurisdiction to review the September 10 and December 18, 2014 orders because they were not specified in the notice of appeal |
| Whether Corah’s OSHA-based claims survive or were adequately pleaded/argued on appeal | Corah alleged AIR falsification could have impeded an OSHA investigation | Defendant notes AIRs were internal, separate OSHA records existed, and plaintiff failed to develop the OSHA argument on appeal | Court: OSHA claims not adequately developed/unsupported; appellate court declines to consider further; summary judgment affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- Ioerger v. Halverson Constr. Co., 232 Ill. 2d 196 (Illinois 2008) (summary judgment standard)
- Williams v. Manchester, 228 Ill. 2d 404 (Illinois 2008) (summary judgment review principles)
- Weather-Tite, Inc. v. Univ. of St. Francis, 233 Ill. 2d 385 (Illinois 2009) (de novo review of summary judgment)
- Dubina v. Mesirow Realty Dev., Inc., 178 Ill. 2d 496 (Illinois 1997) (effect of voluntary dismissal on finality and appealability)
- Sardiga v. Northern Trust Co., 409 Ill. App. 3d 56 (Ill. App. Ct.) (plaintiff bears burden to show refusal was to avoid illegality under Whistleblower Act)
- General Motors Corp. v. Pappas, 242 Ill. 2d 163 (Illinois 2011) (scope of appellate review tied to notice of appeal)
- Michael v. Precision Alliance Group, LLC, 2014 IL 117376 (Illinois 2014) (plaintiff’s burden to prove retaliatory cause of discharge)