Appellant, Donald Dobkin (“Mr.Dobkin”), filed a complaint in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City against appellee, the University of Baltimore School of Law (“U.B.”), alleging that U.B. failed to hire him as an immigration law professor when he was fifty-six years of age, due to age discrimination,
1. Whether the circuit court erred in granting summary judgment as to count I, disparate treatment based on age, where the record evidence showed that Dobkin’s qualifications were demonstrably superior to those of the hiree and UB presented shifting and inconsistent explanations for not interviewing or hiring him[.]
2. Whether the circuit court erred in granting summary judgment as to count II, disparate impact based on age, where the record evidence showed that UB has never hired any entry-level candidates who were over the age of 40[.]
For the reasons that follow, we affirm the judgment of the circuit court.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
In August 2009, U.B. posted an advertisement on the Association of American Law Schools (“AALS”) Bulletin, seeking applicants relating to three teaching positions for the 2010-2011 academic year. The advertisement read as follows:
THE UNIVERSITY OF BALTIMORE SCHOOL OF LAW * seeks entry level or experienced faculty for tenure-track or tenured positions beginning in the 2009-2010 academic year. We invite applications from candidates who have a distinguished academic background, a record of or the promise of both teaching excellence and scholarly distinction,and a commitment to service in law school and the community. A wide range of teaching interests will be considered, including but not limited to commercial law, intellectual property, immigration, environmental law, contracts, property, criminal law, and torts.
Positions will remain open until filled but applicants are encouraged to apply as soon as possible to receive full consideration. In keeping with its commitment to a diverse faculty, the law school welcomes applications from all qualified candidates and encourages women and minorities to apply....
Approximately 833 applicants applied for the faculty positions, including appellant and the successful applicant. According to her resume, the successful applicant graduated from the University of Michigan — Ann Arbor in 1999. After her undergraduate studies, she interned with the American Civil Liberties’ Union (“ACLU”) Immigration Rights Project. She then matriculated to Yale University Law School, where she supervised students and facilitated classes as the Student Director of the Immigration Legal Services Clinic. She graduated in 2003, and became a member of the New York Bar Association. From 2003 to 2005, she was a faculty fellow at Seton Hall University School of Law’s Immigration/Human Rights and Civil Litigation Clinics, and designed course work, facilitated seminar classes, and supervised law students in proceedings concerning asylum, human trafficking, immigrant labor rights, and criminal immigration issues. From 2005 to 2008, the successful applicant clerked for judges on the United States (“U.S.”) District Court and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. In 2008, she became a clinical teaching fellow at Georgetown University Law Center, where she attended a course on clinical pedagogy, taught law students in the asylum law clinic, and published an article in the Georgetown Immigration Law Review.
As stated in appellant’s resume, he obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Windsor in Ontario, Canada, where he graduated in the top fifteen percent of his 1975 graduating class.
On August 29, 2009, appellant submitted his application materials for the immigration law professor position to Elizabeth Samuels, (“Ms.Samuels”), the Chairperson of the Faculty Appointments Committee
Since I’ve not heard from UB [sic] concerning my application for the position in Immigration and Administrative Law, I assume there is no interest. I would like to know who was hired for the position?
Ms. Samuels replied the same day, offering her apologies that appellant was not interviewed, and stated that the successful applicant was hired for the new position. Less than an hour later, appellant wrote:
Thanks for answering me. It’s simply amazing how law schools choose newbies like [the successful applicant] and don’t even bother to interview candidates with a world of experience. Something is seriously wrong here.
From the 833 applications, only 56 applicants were interviewed, and the Committee identified fourteen candidates for “second-round” interviews. In addition to the successful applicant, the Committee hired two others, who were thirty-eight and forty years old respectively. According to Ms. Samuels’ affidavit, U.B.’s criteria was “a combination of academic training and success, publications, judicial clerkships, and teaching experience,” in conjunction with a Juris Doctor from a top ten U.S. law school. The Committee was highly impressed with the successful applicant’s academic credentials, as she was a Yale University School of Law graduate and she clerked on the federal levels. Moreover, the Committee favored her significant experience and training in clinical teaching in the area of immigrant rights.
According to U.B., appellant was neither interviewed nor hired because he had no prior clinical or law school teaching experience, and his academic credentials did not compare favorably to other applicants. He did not graduate from a prestigious law school, and had neither state nor federal clerkship experience. Although appellant practiced law for countless years, he did not possess the additional qualifications that the Committee desired.
On March 18, 2010, appellant filed a charge of age, national origin, and gender discrimination with the Baltimore Community Relations Commission and the Maryland Commission of Human Relations. Because more than 180 days passed regarding that filing, on November 16, 2010, appellant filed a complaint in the circuit court, alleging that appellee failed to hire him, but instead hired a thirty-two year old woman, who was less experienced and qualified for the position. On January 31, 2011, U.B. filed its answer.
Following discovery, on November 10, 2011, U.B. filed its motion for summary judgment, asserting that appellant (1) failed to submit any evidence that the Committee harbored a discriminatory attitude against applicants over the age of forty; (2) failed to establish that the Committee predicated its decision on the applicants’ ages, (3) provided insufficient evidence to establish discriminatory pretext, (4) failed to submit any evidence to dispute that U.B. hired a substantial number of faculty over the age of forty; and (5) failed to identify a policy on statistical evidence that U.B.’s hiring practices had an adverse impact on applicants over the age of forty. On December 6, 2011, appellant filed his opposition to the motion for summary
On December 14, 2011, the circuit court granted U.B.’s motion for summary judgment, finding:
... The [cjourt — it’s not the [cjourt’s decision to decide that practitioner’s [sic] are better for clinical teachers than academicians. Maybe they are. But that’s [sic] not the [c]ourt’s decision. And that’s the core argument that’s being made here. And that’s what the core evidence is.
The core evidence is that the University of Baltimore was looking for and ending up hiring somebody who was better described as an academician than a practitioner to teach clinical education. And from Mr. Dobkin’s standpoint, particularly since they wanted someone with breadth, that that [sic] was totally wrong. Because they hired somebody who only had experience in one area.
And frankly, the law school didn’t care. Because what they were looking at was, [sic] more academic credentials. Those were of high importance to them. Much more important than the practice.
It really, again, just — and I went though [sic] this several times, because frankly — and went through in particular about the law — because the [appellant] was so adamant about his own qualifications, and the superiority of those. And what it is.
And in the end, on the incompetence, Not discrimination, but incompetence of the Appointment Committee. And that really was his focus. And that that [sic] incompetence leads to that. And, again, that’s [sic] not my understanding of the law.
So, for all of those reasons, you know, Im [sic] going to grant the Motion for Summary Judgment. And it may be that the appellate court has something to teach me that I’m wrong in.
Thereafter, appellant noted a timely appeal.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
We review an entry of summary judgment de novo to determine whether any genuine issue of material fact exists and whether the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Poole v. Coakley & Williams Construction, Inc.,
Summary judgment is not proper when there is a genuine dispute of material fact, including disputes over reasonable factual inferences. Poole,
“Courts must take special care when considering a motion for summary judgment in an employment discrimination case.... ” Derrickson v. Circuit City Stores, Inc.,
DISCUSSION
I. Whether Appellant Met His Initial Burden Of Establishing A Prima Facie Case Of Age Discrimination.
A complainant may establish that age was a factor in an employer’s hiring decision by using direct or circumstantial evidence. Williams,
In the absence of direct evidence, Maryland Courts have traditionally held that in employment discrimination actions, parties must engage in the four-part burden-shifting paradigm described by the United State Supreme Court in McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green,
Once the complaining party succeeds in his or her initial burden of establishing a prima facie case of discrimination, the burden shifts to the employer to assert a “legitimate, non-discriminatory reason” for its failure to hire the complainant. Giant I,
Pretext may be demonstrated by establishing that the employer favored other similarly situated applicants, who were not members of the protected class, and disfavored him or her. Giant I,
Having outlined the legal structure of McDonnell Douglas, we now analyze the burden-shifting model to the case at bar. Regarding the first factor, it is uncontested that appellant, who was 56 years old at the time of his application, is a member of a protected class. Furthermore, appellant satisfies factors three and four because U.B. did not hire him, and after rejecting appellant, the position remained open to which U.B. sought other applicants.
Concerning the second factor, U.B. avers that appellant lacked clinical teaching experience, which was a required quality to merit an interview. However, one of the Committee members, Dionne Koller (“Ms.Koller”), stated during her deposition, “... I would not say [appellant was] less qualified, I would say less attractive.” We surmise that an applicant need only meet the minimum requirements as set forth in the posted job description, and hence, appellant met his initial burden of establishing a prima facie case of age discrimination.
II. Whether U.B. Asserted A “Legitimate, Non-Discriminatory Reason” For Its Employment Decision.
As previously stated, once appellant succeeds in his initial burden,' the burden shifts to U.B. to assert a “legitimate, non-discriminatory reason” for its failure to hire the complainant. See Giant I,
III. Whether Appellant Met His Burden By Submitting Sufficient Evidence From Which A Trier Of Fact Could Reasonably Find That U.B.’s Reasons Were Pretextual And Discriminatory.
In Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Co. v. Bowen,
... Once [the plaintiff] established a prima facie case of handicap discrimination — that he was physically able to perform the duties of a carman’s helper — the burden of persuasion properly shifted to [the defendant] to establish to a “reasonable probability” its defense that [the plaintiffs] physical handicap would create a future hazard to his health or safety.
Id. at 309,
In Taylor v. Giant of Maryland, LLC,
... [T]he independent medical examination was not an adverse employment action and that [the plaintiffs] male comparators were “not similarly situated to her, as a matter of law,” because they had different supervisors and their health conditions could be followed and monitored through the Department's] ... mandatory physicals.
Id. at 642,
In Williams v. Maryland Dpt. of Human Resources,
In Maryland Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Inc. v. Maryland Comm’n on Human Relations,
In Nerenberg v. RICA of Southern Maryland,
Although Maryland’s case law regarding employment discrimination for promotions and wrongful termination are useful, they slightly differ from the case at bar, a “failure to hire” action, because the plaintiffs were current employees.
Qualifications
In Casey v. Town of Portsmouth,
On appeal, the defendant argued that it did not hire the plaintiff because he interviewed poorly, which the plaintiff recognized as a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason. Id. at 1038. Nonetheless, he contended that the court erred in granting summary judgment because “whether he was not hired because of a poor interview that was a pretext for age[-] based animus because that justification [was] subjective.” Id. The Rhode Island Supreme Court determined that the plaintiffs arguments were not sufficient evidence, and that it would not require an employer to “choose between hiring an applicant despite a poor
In McGarry v. Pielech,
[H]e earned an undergraduate degree in economics, and later an MBA degree----[H]e worked as a teacher at [the town’s high school] from 1969 to 1970, but left to work in the trucking industry — a more lucrative field — -where he remained for twenty-six years until he reactivated his teaching certificates in 1996. In 1997, [the] plaintiff began substitute teaching in the [town’s] school system. The plaintiff testified that upon learning of a probable teaching vacancy in [the town’s] [m]iddle [s]chool’s English Department for the 1998-1999 school year, he enrolled in two English courses, and in July 1998, he obtained a certificate to teach English.
Id. at 276. In comparison, one of the successful candidates possessed a Bachelor of Arts in English, minored in journalism, and enrolled in countless writing courses. Id. at 277, n. 6. The other candidate obtained a Master’s degree in teaching. Id. Although the plaintiff was a fair applicant, the defendant determined that the others possessed superior qualifications. Id. at 277.
The jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff. Id. at 278-79. At the end of trial, the defendant renewed his motion for summary judgment to which the circuit court granted.
... [Tjhere was evidence that [the] defendant, possibly through negligence, misrepresented to the Commission that [the] plaintiff was not qualified to teach English. These factors, combined with the evidentiary inference that the missing records were unfavorable to defendant,[13 ] to wit, the official explanation for not hiring [the] plaintiff was false (which the jury could decide with or without the inference), could [have] provefn] that the real reason he was not hired was his age.
Id. at 285.
In Perkins v. Doyon Universal Servs., LLC,
... [T]he successful candidate’s experience was directly in line with the duties of a kennel tech at Anchorage Animal Control Center. The resume of the man hired indicated that he had worked at a kennel from 1990 to 1998 performing building maintenance and caring for dogs____ [S]he hired him primarily because of his eight years of experience working at Coshok’s Canine Castle. In comparison, [the plaintiffs] resume listed his experience as five years and two months employment as a laboratory animal technician.
Id. at 417. Furthermore, the defendant did not favor the plaintiffs experience in “[breeding monkeys” in a research laboratory because it was inhumane. Id. The Alaska Supreme Court rendered this a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason. Id. To establish that the defendant’s reasons were pretextual and encompassed discriminatory intent, the plaintiff offered evidence that one of the successful candidates indicated that he was a felon, and that he did not possess a driver’s license. Id. at 418. The Court affirmed the circuit court, concluding that the plaintiff failed to meet his burden of proof because:
There [was] no indication that a misdemeanor conviction or the lack of a driver’s license would have diminished an applicant’s suitability, or rendered the applicant ineligible for the kennel technician position. The fact [the defendant] hired someone with a prior misdemeanor conviction and without a driver’s license [did] not imply discrimination against [the plaintiff] and there was no genuine dispute of material fact with regard to the criminal record or driver’s license.
Id.
In Reeves v. MV Transportation, Inc.,
[The] plaintiff had (1) used time and resources at [his] work to apply for the job; (2) sent him an e-mail he regarded as arrogant; (3) not highlighted litigation experience on his resume; and (4) not worked for a law firm.
Id. at 672,
The California appellate court determined that the plaintiff had more experience and training in labor law, but the successful candidate “listed management of all phases of employment litigation in state and federal courts, [and] had the more recent employment law experience.” Id. at 676,
In the case at bar, we do not discount the years of immigration law experience that appellant possesses. According to the record before us, he has handled over 7,000 cases, founded an immigration law firm, which he claimed was the largest of its kind, and has given global lectures on this specialized area of law. However, U.B. desired a candidate who had a “record of or the promise of both teaching excellence and scholarly distinctions,” and this was where the successful applicant was highly favored. She was a Student Director at Yale Law School’s Immigration Legal Services Clinic, where she supervised students and facilitated classes. After graduation, she joined Seton Hall University School of Law’s Immigration/Human Rights and Civil Litigation Clinics, as a faculty fellow, to which she facilitated seminar classes and supervised law students regarding immigrant rights. She honed her research and writing skills as a federal judicial clerk. Moreover, she became a clinical teaching fellow at Georgetown University Law Center, and published an article in the Georgetown Immigration Law Review. Becoming a clinical law fellow at Georgetown Law Center is quite remarkable, as the Law Center has been ranked one of the highest in the nation for its clinical training capabilities. Education — Grad Schools, U.S.News & World Report, 2013, available at http://gradschools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/ top-law-schools/clinical-training-rankings (last visited Mar. 11, 2013).
Appellant avers that the successful applicant “had never practiced immigration law, and had experience in the academic setting in only one narrow and esoteric area of immigration law — asylum law, compared to [his] experience in every area of immigration law____” Appellant further maintains:
... I have the greatest pedagogy in the world, being an expert in virtually every area of immigration law, and I have taught — I took people in who couldn’t, you know, couldn’t make a living and I gave them a profession they never had.
Firstly, “a disgruntled employee’s self-serving statements about his [or her] qualifications and abilities generally are insufficient to raise a question of fact about an employer’s honest assessment of that ability.” Williams,
Furthermore, we stated in Univ. of Baltimore v. Peri Iz,
The evaluation of the performance of a college professor and of his or her suitability to the educational needs, goals and philosophies of a particular institution necessarily involves many subjective, nonquantifiable factors. The assessment of these factors is best performed by those closely involved in the life of the institution, not by judges----Even if the faculty member’s performance has been exemplary, measured by the most objective yardstick possible, the institution may wish to hire another person because, for example, an individual with superior qualifications has become available, or the institution decides that this particular faculty member does not mesh with the institution’s educational goals and philosophies, however excellent his [or her] work and distinguished his [or her] scholarship. As a matter of sound public policy an institution of higher learning should be free to make such decisions ....
(additional citations omitted) (emphasis in original).
We cannot thereby demand or require U.B. to hire applicants with practical experience as opposed to academic training, as it has a right to choose what qualifications address their needs. Appellant must understand that his and the successful applicant’s qualifications were not equivalent like the applicants in Reeves. Instead, they were different types of skills and training. Accordingly, because qualifications are relative, as it depends on the preference of the employer, we cannot deem appellant’s qualifications as superior than the successful applicant’s in this case.
Inconsistent Justifications
Although the Reeves Court offers a pertinent analysis on qualifications, we also examine it for the purposes of inconsistent justifications. In Reeves,
The California appellate court concluded that these inconsistencies were not consequential, and that they failed to qualify as a shifting reason for the defendant’s employment decision. Id. at 678-79,
In Equal Employment Opportunity Comm’n v. Sears Roebuck and Co.,
On appeal, the Fourth Circuit determined that the plaintiff established a prima facie case concerning unlawful discrimination, and that the defendant offered a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason. Id. at 852. The plaintiff argued that the defendant’s inconsistent statements were evidence of pretext, and the Court agreed. See id. at 852. “[The defendant] ha[d], over time, proffered several reasons for its failure to hire [the plaintiff], including the selection of someone else, a lack of available hours in the loss prevention department, and the belief that [the plaintiff] had been investigated for sexual harassment in the past.” Id. The Fourth Circuit concluded that there was sufficient evidence from which a trier of fact could determine that the defendant’s “ ‘asserted justification [was] false,’ ” and probative of pretext. Id. at 852-53.
In Price v. Thompson,
On appeal, the defendant presented the following reasons regarding its failure to hire the plaintiff: (1) he was less qualified and non-certified, (2) he was working in the technology field during the application phase, and likely required a “refresher” course, and (3) he wanted to re-classify the position. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit surmised that although the defendant was incorrect concerning the plaintiffs certification, there were no inconsistencies in the defendant’s rationale because the defendant later asserted that the plaintiff was experienced, the successful candidates were working as technology personnel, and because of new technology, the plaintiff required additional training, and the plaintiff indicated that “ ‘he could also see [the job] as someone acting as a liaison between [him] and the engineering staff and the administrative staff,’ ” which was not in the job’s description. Id. at 215-17. The court ultimately concluded that simple “inconsistent statements that ar[o]se from reading applications hastily or from being nervous during depositions”
In Byrnie v. Town of Cromwell,
[t]his assertion [was] particularly hard to swallow given that [the plaintiff] had been a substitute teacher at [the school] for five years and was often asked to take over classes for extended periods when other teachers were on leave. It strain[ed] credulity to believe that a teacher unfamiliar with the competencies necessary for effective teaching would be relied upon for so long.
Id. at 105. The court concluded that although the two reasons were not necessarily inconsistent, the defendant’s explanations raised credibility issues. Id. at 105-06. As a result, in conjunction with the plaintiffs other evidence, the issue of age discrimination was a matter for a jury to decide. Id. at 111.
In the case at bar, appellant avers that U.B. originally advertised for an immigration law professor, as opposed to a clinical law position. Regarding appellant’s first contention, the advertisement stated the following:
THE UNIVERSITY OF BALTIMORE SCHOOL OF LAW
* seeks entry level or experienced faculty for tenure-track or tenured positions beginning in the 2009-2010 academic year. We invite applications from candidates who have a distinguished academic background, a record of or the promise of both teaching excellence and scholarly distinction, and a commitment to service in law school and the community. A wide range of teaching interests will be considered, including but not limited to commercial law, intellectual property, immigration, environmental law, contracts, property, criminal law, and torts.
The advertisement did not specifically state “clinical law experience,” but did allude to “teaching excellence.” U.B. included the minimum qualifications that applicants needed to likely obtain an interview. Appellant does not support his contention with any case law, which requires that advertisements include every desired qualification, so we are not persuaded by his assertion.
Appellant also maintains that U.B. shifted its position regarding why he was not hired because it originally stated the following in its in interrogatory:
[Appellant] was not among the 56 individuals to be selected to be invited for an interview out of the original 833 candidates. Twenty-two of the original 833 candidates, including [appellant], listed both immigration law and clinical teachingas subject areas in which they would be interested in teaching. Of that group, nine individuals actually had clinical law teaching experience. [Appellant] did not. Although [appellant] practiced immigration law for 25 years before 2004 and had published two law review articles in recent years, the Committee concluded that his academic credentials were inferior to others in the group of 22, and more important, he lacked clinical law teaching experience. As such, he was not selected by the Faculty Appointments Committee to be interviewed for the position of director of the immigrant rights clinic.
However subsequent, it asserted that he lacked clerkship experience. Once again, we examine U.B.’s advertisement, which desired applicants with “distinguished academic background and scholarly distinctions.” In the legal profession, judicial clerkships are both prestigious and valuable because law school graduates improve their research and writing skills under the tutelage of a judge by drafting and re-writing opinions. The graduate obtains a thorough understanding of trial and/or appellate procedure. Clerkships broaden the graduate’s level of legal concepts by exposure to several different areas of law. Analytical and time management skills are also sharpened. Overall, clerkships lead to a plethora of career paths and permit the graduate to have a lifetime bond with his or her judge. The alleged discrepancies do not amount to the type of inconsistent explanations presented in Sears, and are therefore not probative of pretext.
IY. Whether Appellant Presented Sufficient Evidence That U.B. Had A Practice Of Discriminating Against Older Applicants, Which Resulted In A Disparate Impact Against Applicants Over Forty.
According to the Fourth Circuit,
[statistics with regard to the defendant’s employment policy and practice may be helpful to a determination whether its action in a particular case conformed to a general pattern of discrimination. Although statistics cannot alone prove the existence of a pattern or practice of discrimination, or even establish a prima facie case shifting to the employer the burden of rebutting the interference raised by the figures, “ ‘statistical analysis served and will continue to serve an important role[ ] in cases in which the existence of discrimination is disputed.’ ”
Derrickson,
In Turner v. Public Serv. Co. of Colorado,
First, ... [wjithout evidence regarding the number of male and female applicants,interviewees, and the like, the employment statistic [was] nearly meaningless.... Second, [the plaintiff] ... fail[ed] to account for the fact that another woman participated in the same 2004 application process as [the plaintiff], performed second-best among seventeen interviewees, and received a job offer.... [The plaintiff] admits that [the defendant] was subject to a hiring freeze for a large portion of [1992 to 2005], and no candidates— regardless of their sex — could have been hired then.... [Furthermore, the plaintiff] neglect[ed] to mention it hired three women for entry-level positions [in 2006]____Finally, none of [the plaintiffs] statistics eliminate^] [the defendant’s] non[-Jdiscriminatory reason for refusing to hire her.
Id. at 1147-48 (additional citations omitted). Thus, the plaintiff presented insufficient evidence of statistics that established pretext and discriminatory intent. Id. at 1148. For this reason, along with others, the Tenth Circuit affirmed the U.S. District Court’s ruling. Id. at 1150.
In the case at bar, appellant had the burden of producing sufficient evidence to demonstrate that U.B.’s reasons were not credible and were probative of age discrimination. Appellant avers that he established his prima facie case of disparate impact by identifying U.B.’s specific employment practice that had a substantial disparate impact on older applicants. Appellant alleges that U.B. had a “practice and policy of discriminating against entry-level applicants over the age of 40 ...,” as he maintained that U.B.’s selection rate for entry-level applicants over the age of forty was zero.
Appellant substantiates Ms argument with Hazelwood School Dist. v. United States,
Hazelwood is fairly distinguishable from the case at bar because the plaintiff and the defendant offered statistics, percentages, and comparisons, but appellant offered none based on the record before us, and failed to include a demography of the available hiring pool. Hence, the case at bar is akin to Turner because appellant merely provides ad-hoc statistics.
[Statistical evidence in a disparate treatment case, in and of itself, rarely suffices to rebut an employer’s legitimate, non[-]discriminatory rationale for its decision to dismiss an individual employee.... This is because a company’s overall employment statistics will, in at least many cases, have little direct bearing on the specific intentions of the employer when dismissing a particular individual.
LeBlanc v. Great Am. Ins. Co.,
On the record before us, we conclude that U.B. has presented a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for its refusal to hire appellant. Appellant further failed to adduce sufficient evidence to meet his burden of establishing that U.B.’s reasons were pretextual, and its motive was discriminatory. Additionally, appellant did not establish that U.B.’s hiring practices had a disparate impact on applicants over the age of forty. For the foregoing reasons, we affirm the granting of summary judgment.
JUDGMENT OF THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR BALTIMORE CITY IS AFFIRMED. COSTS TO BE PAID BY APPELLANT.
Notes
. Appellant also filed a charge of gender discrimination. However, he has limited his appeal to the issue of age discrimination.
. Md.Code (1984, 2009 Repl.Vol., 2012 Supp.), § 20-606(a) of the State Government Article provides:
(a) Employers. — An employer may not:
(1) fail or refuse to hire, discharge, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to the individual’s compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of:
(i) the individual’s race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, genetic information, or disability unrelated in nature and extent so as to reasonably precluded the performance of the employment^ ]....
. The name of the successful applicant, as well as other applicants, have been filed under seal by agreement of the parties.
. The record is not clear whether a Bachelor of Laws degree from a Canadian institution was or is equivalent to a Juris Doctor in the United States.
. In Ms. Samuels’ affidavit, she stated that the Committee was composed of three male and two female faculty members who were all over the age of forty.
. There was an argument regarding how many law review articles appellant published, as he contended four, and though U.B. noted this fact, it argued that only two were published in reputable and distinguished journals.
. As a U.S. Army soldier, the plaintiff sustained a gunshot injury, and the Army surgeon advised that the bullet remain in the plaintiff's vertebra because it posed no health risks. Bowen, 60 Md.App. at 301,
. Our Court affirmed the grant of summary judgment regarding the plaintiff's age discrimination claim because he acquiesced to summary judgment during the motion’s hearing. Williams,
. In Maryland Shipbuilding,
. Our Court in Nerenberg,
. In "failure to promote” actions, “[a]n appointing authority may promote from within an organizational unit a qualified candidate who is the incumbent in a position that is reclassified without requiring that the qualified candidate be on an eligible list for the particular classification....” Williams,
. The plaintiff also renewed his motion for a new trial. However, pertinent to our analysis is the motion for summary judgment. McGarry,
. The missing records were interview sheets to which the interviewers took handwritten notes concerning the applicant, and rated his or her responses to questions. However, the records were determined to be missing. McGarry,
. The plaintiff also applied for an animal enforcement officer position, but pertinent to our analysis is the kennel technician position because the Alaska Supreme Court compared the successful candidate’s qualifications with those of the plaintiff's. See generally Perkins,
. In California, the plaintiff served in the U.S. Marine Corps, but worked part-time as a loss prevention agent at Sears. The Marines transferred him to North Carolina, and he sought employment for the same position he possessed for ten years in California. See generally Sears,