Ramsey REED, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. BUCKEYE FIRE EQUIPMENT; Bryan Bower, Defendants-Appellees.
No. 06-1481.
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.
July 30, 2007.
241 Fed. Appx. 917
Argued: May 23, 2007.
Nor does a compound interest provision, either express or implied, appear in the Note‘s specification of the consequences of a default by the Johnsons. Rather, the Note included only these two provisions relating to default: First, a default by the Johnsons would entitle Cunningham to demand immediate payment in full of the balance owed her. Second, if the Johnsons were more than fifteen days late with an installment payment, they would be obliged to pay a late fee of four percent of the sum that was past due. In light of these two expressly specified consequences of default, the Note‘s failure to provide for compound interest as an additional incident of late payment is especially conspicuous, and difficult to reconcile with Cunningham‘s position.
In sum, the Note made no provision, express or implied, for interest to be compounded. Thus, pursuant to the applicable legal principles, the Johnsons were obligated to pay only simple interest on the Note‘s principal amount. The premise of the district court‘s denial of the Post-Judgment Motion—that the judgments against the Johnsons, the sums of which were based on compound interest, were correct—was therefore legally erroneous, and the court‘s ruling in that regard constituted an abuse of discretion. Accordingly, we are obliged to vacate the Post-Judgment Order and remand. On remand, the court should exercise its discretion over the Post-Judgment Motion in light of our determination that the Note allowed for simple interest only, and that the sums of the judgments against the Johnsons were therefore incorrect.
III.
Pursuant to the foregoing, we vacate the district court‘s denial of the Post-Judgment Motion and remand for such other and further proceedings as may be appropriate.
VACATED AND REMANDED.
Before KING and DUNCAN, Circuit Judges, and WILKINS, Senior Circuit Judge.
Affirmed in part; reversed and remanded in part by unpublished PER CURIAM opinion.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
Ramsey Reed (“Appellant“) appeals the district court‘s grant of summary judgment in favor of Buckeye Fire Equipment Company (“Buckeye“) and Bryan Bower (collectively, “Appellees“) on various claims related to the termination of his employment on April 30, 2001. He alleges that, in firing him while he was on medical leave, Buckeye violated the Family and Medical Leave Act (the “FMLA“),
The district court discerned no material issue of fact in any of Appellant‘s claims and granted summary judgment in favor of Appellees on both the FMLA and state-law claims. Our review of the record reveals, however, that Appellant has presented triable issues in the claims against Buckeye and the obstruction of justice claim against Bryan Bower. Accordingly, we reverse the district court‘s order on the FMLA, age discrimination and obstruction of justice claims, and affirm on the civil-conspiracy claim. We set forth the pertinent facts below, reciting them in the light most favorable to Appellant. See Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).
I.
Buckeye is a family-owned business headquartered in Kings Mountain, North Carolina that manufactures and sells fire-fighting equipment. Tom Bower and his two sons, Kevin and Bryan, own and operate the company.
On January 25, 2001, Appellant was involved in a serious car accident that necessitated medical leave. He suffered a severe compound fracture to his leg that punctured his skin in several places and required immediate surgery. Appellant was hospitalized for several days following the surgery and underwent rehabilitative therapy thereafter.
On the day of the accident, Appellant‘s wife called Kevin Bower, Buckeye‘s Vice President of Operations, to inform him of her husband‘s accident and injury. Once Appellant was discharged from the hospital, he also spoke with Kevin Bower and informed him that he would require at least two months’ leave from work to recover.1 Appellant updated Kevin Bower from time to time regarding his medical progress, which was steady until late-February.
On February 15, 2001, Buckeye‘s maintenance manager, Howard Corbin (“Corbin“), called Appellant to seek his help
Over the intervening weekend, Appellant was hospitalized for treatment of a serious blood clot in his leg. He remained in the hospital for two days and was placed on blood-thinning medication before being discharged with an order to remain homebound for six weeks. Appellant spoke with Buckeye‘s comptroller about this setback, but was unsuccessful in several attempts to reach Kevin Bower about the same.
Following treatment for the blood clot, Appellant‘s recovery continued at a steady pace. By the end of March 2001, he was using a walker, was cleared by his doctors to leave his house, and was receiving outpatient physical therapy. By mid-April, he was walking with a cane and had purchased a new truck in preparation for his return to work. On April 17, Appellant told Corbin that he would return to Buckeye full-time on May 7. However, Tom Bower called Appellant on April 30 to tell him that Buckeye was terminating his employment for performance-related reasons. By that time, Appellant had been on medical leave for nearly thirteen-and-a-half weeks.
A. Contested Workplace Issues
The parties dispute virtually every material fact underlying Appellant‘s termination. To substantiate its claim of inadequate job performance, Buckeye points to a number of equipment problems arising both during and after Appellant‘s tenure, a change in Appellant‘s job title in 1996, and a series of personal conduct issues. Appellant disputes the significance of the equipment problems, contests Buckeye‘s characterization of the change in job title, and challenges the claims of unprofessional conduct. We now briefly summarize each episode in contention and the nature of the dispute.
1. The Weld Line
In 1997, Buckeye contracted with a local manufacturer, Sotec, to develop a weld line to automate the production of its fire extinguisher cylinders. Tom Bower wanted the automated line to produce two hundred forty welded cylinders per hour and pay for itself within three years. Sotec agreed to Buckeye‘s design specifications and promised to deliver the weld line within twenty to twenty-two weeks.
Appellant, as Buckeye‘s head engineer, spent significant time at Sotec‘s plant working closely with its personnel during the production and testing phase of the line. The project experienced technical problems and the line remained nonfunctional after eighteen months, far beyond the contractual time frame. Buckeye contends that Appellant failed to keep it fully informed of these problems. Kevin Bower eventually grew so frustrated with Sotec that he ordered the line moved to Buckeye‘s facilities for completion. It became apparent that even then the weld line could not meet the expectations of Buckeye‘s management.
Buckeye contends that Appellant was principally responsible for this project and that its problematic history, along with his lack of communication regarding the problems during the line‘s construction, is evidence of his poor job performance. Appellant argues that the problems with the weld line lay in its construction, which was
2. Gauge Assembly Machine
Sometime in either 1996 or 1999 (Appellant claims the former and Buckeye the latter), Buckeye purchased a machine to automate the gauge assembly for its fire extinguishers. The machine never functioned properly because of design flaws attributable to the original manufacturer. As a result, Buckeye required the manufacturer to redesign and rebuild parts of the machine. The machine‘s laser sensors proved particularly troublesome, requiring constant manual adjustment. When Appellant was on medical leave, the gauge assembly machine began malfunctioning, with expensive consequences.
Buckeye contends that these events reflect poorly on Appellant‘s performance because he selected the laser sensors and was responsible for the project. Appellant contends that he played no role in the machine‘s poor design and was able to circumvent it with manual adjustments that kept the machine running for more than five years. He further attributes the need for costly repairs to the damage caused by maintenance workers’ maladroit attempts to perform manual adjustments in his absence.
3. Automated Labeling Machine
In 1997, Buckeye purchased an automation line that was designed to fill fire extinguishers with a dry chemical. Appellant convinced Tom Bower to add a $65,000 component to the line that automatically applied labels to the fire extinguishers. Buckeye claims that this machine never worked properly and that it was on the verge of purchasing a new labeling machine for $20,000 at the time the parties were conducting discovery in this lawsuit. Appellant counters that the machine worked perfectly for a year or more and only ran into problems when Buckeye switched to a cheaper label that was not compatible with the machine.
4. Box Assembly Machine
In 2000, Buckeye installed a machine in its automated cylinder fill line to assemble boxes in which to ship fire extinguishers. However, the boxes did not stay closed properly, resulting in extinguishers falling out and generating customer complaints. Buckeye claims that Appellant had primary responsibility for installing the machine and ensuring that it was operational, and that it did not work properly until several years after Appellant‘s termination. Appellant responds that the problem involved the use of a glue that did not dry quickly enough in warm weather and was corrected before he was fired by using a different type of glue.
5. Change in Appellant‘s Job Title
Buckeye hired Appellant in 1994 as General Manager. The parties dispute, however, whether Appellant ever exercised authority commensurate with the title. Buckeye asserts that Appellant supervised both manufacturing and engineering operations of the company and had eighty-five employees reporting to him. Appellant argues that he was relegated to a subordinate role devoid of the autonomous power or managerial responsibility that Buckeye now claims.
In any event, the parties agree that Buckeye changed Appellant‘s job title to Head of Engineering in 1996 in the reshuffling that followed the retirement of Buckeye‘s chief engineer and president. In this capacity, Appellant was to supervise “product development, engineering changes of existing products and all in-
Although Appellant initially resisted the change in positions, he eventually acceded to it. Buckeye gave him a $2,000 salary increase and issued a positively-worded announcement to all of the company‘s employees. Buckeye claims that the salary increase was an inducement for Appellant to stay with the company and the announcement was intended to spare him embarrassment.
6. Appellant‘s Personal Habits
Buckeye contends that Appellant‘s personal habits and professional demeanor caused problems in the workplace. Specifically, it claims that: (1) Appellant violated its policy on smoking breaks by frequently leaving the plant floor, in full view of other employees, to smoke; (2) it received complaints that Appellant left work early, arrived late, and was often visibly hungover; and (3) Appellant bragged about his gambling exploits and waived wads of cash around in front of hourly employees who earned less then he. Buckeye claims that it warned Appellant about this behavior on numerous occasions. Although there was no record of any warnings in Appellant‘s file, Buckeye states that it was company policy not to reprimand managers in writing. Appellant disputes the allegations. He claims to have stopped smoking before the alleged smoke breaks, that he never received negative feedback from his supervisors, and that his behavior did not differ in any significant respect from that of others at the plant.
B. Bryan Bower‘s Alleged Threat
After Appellant‘s termination, he sent a demand letter to Tom Bower seeking monetary damages and reinstatement in settlement of his claims. He further offered to forego reinstatement if Buckeye paid him roughly two years’ salary and provided a good letter of reference. Tom Bower turned the letter over to Bryan Bower, who handled most of Buckeye‘s legal matters. Before responding, Bryan searched through Appellant‘s personal effects at the plant and discovered romantic correspondence sent to Appellant by a woman to whom he was not married. Bryan brought this note to his father‘s attention.
A subsequent phone call between Appellant and Bryan Bower is another source of significant dispute. Appellant alleges that Bryan, acting at his father‘s behest, tried to blackmail him by threatening to reveal the correspondence to Appellant‘s wife if he proceeded with this lawsuit. Bryan claims that he called Appellant to attempt to resolve this dispute amicably, and neither made threats nor discussed doing so with anyone. He acknowledges mentioning the letter to Appellant, but only to ask Appellant to have his girlfriend stop sending correspondence to Buckeye.
C. Trial Court Proceedings
Appellant filed suit alleging that Buckeye violated the FMLA by terminating him while he was on medical leave, and engaged in unlawful age discrimination by transferring his job responsibilities to younger workers after firing him. Appellant further alleged that Bryan Bower engaged in civil conspiracy and obstruction of justice by attempting, at Tom Bower‘s behest, to blackmail him into foregoing suit. Appellees moved for summary judgment on all claims, which the district court granted. See Reed v. Buckeye Fire Equip. Co., 422 F.Supp.2d 570, 572 (W.D.N.C. 2006). Appellant timely appealed.
We review de novo an appeal from a grant of summary judgment and apply the same standard as the district court. Howard v. Winter, 446 F.3d 559, 565 (4th Cir. 2006). Summary judgment is only appropriate “if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.”
A.
First, Appellant challenges the district court‘s grant of summary judgment on his FMLA claim. He alleges that Buckeye violated the FMLA by failing to provide him with the required notice of his rights thereunder. He contends that such failure is actionable because it both interfered with and caused prejudice to his FMLA rights by depriving him of the knowledge that, in order to avoid losing his job, he needed to return to work within the twelve weeks of protected leave. He claims that if he had received the required notice, he could have structured his medical care to return within this time frame and consequently would not have been fired by Buckeye. Buckeye counters that it provided the required notice and regardless terminated Appellant for reasons unrelated to his medical leave.
In its summary judgment analysis, the district court presumed that Buckeye failed to send Appellant the required notice, thereby interfering with his FMLA rights. However, the district court granted Buckeye‘s motion for summary judgment after concluding that any such lack of notice did not prejudice Appellant‘s right to return to his job because Buckeye fired him for reasons independent of his medical leave. We must disagree. We are constrained on this record to find sufficient factual disputes to preclude summary judgment.
Congress passed the FMLA to provide workers flexibility in managing their work and family responsibilities by guaranteeing reasonable medical leave in certain circumstances. See
The right to reinstatement following FMLA leave is not unqualified.
The FMLA requires an employer to provide an employee requesting leave notice of his or her rights within a reasonable time, “one or two business days [after the request] if feasible.”
An employer who prevents or impedes an employee from exercising his or her FMLA rights is liable to the employee for, as appropriate, damages and equitable relief.
With respect to the interference prong, the district court assumed that Buckeye interfered with Appellant‘s FMLA rights by failing to provide the required notice. Buckeye contends that it satisfied its notice obligations by mailing a letter to Appellant on January 26, 2001 that apprised him of his FMLA rights and the twelve-week limit on his medical leave. Appellant responds that Buckeye neither sent this letter nor otherwise provided notice of his rights. The evidence in the record is both ambiguous and disputed. Viewed in the light most favorable to Appellant, we must presume that Buckeye did not send the letter4 and therefore failed to satisfy
We therefore consider whether Appellant has adduced sufficient evidence to survive summary judgment that such interference prejudiced him. Buckeye contends that Appellant was a substandard employee whom it had considered firing long before his FMLA leave and whom it ultimately fired for poor job performance. Appellant argues that there are numerous disputes about the underlying facts, and that the district court erred by resolving those disputes in Buckeye‘s favor. Viewing the evidence in a light most favorable to Appellant, we must agree.
To substantiate its claims of poor job performance, Buckeye points to a series of operational problems with projects on which Appellant worked, certain of his personal habits, and aspects of his employment history. Appellant, however, has responded with evidence that calls each incident into legitimate dispute. For example, Buckeye argues that Appellant was responsible for the problematic development and implementation of the weld line because of his close involvement in its design and construction. However, other evidence suggests that the problems with the line stemmed from the manufacturer‘s decision to use inadequate construction materials. Viewing these facts in Appellant‘s favor, we cannot conclude as a matter of law that this incident is demonstrative of his alleged poor job performance.
Similar factual disputes exist for each of the other incidents at issue. With respect to the gauge assembly machine, Buckeye argues that Appellant equipped the machine with a poorly functioning laser sensor that required constant manual adjustment and eventual replacement at a significant cost. Other evidence suggests that, until he went on medical leave, Appellant was able to keep the machine running despite problems caused by the original manufacturer‘s poor design. With respect to the box assembly machine, Buckeye contends that Appellant selected a faulty machine that could not assemble boxes properly. Other evidence suggests that the problem with the machine was easily resolved when a new type of glue was used to seal the assembled boxes. With respect to the label machine, Buckeye contends that Appellant selected a faulty machine that could not properly apply labels. Other evidence suggests that the machine functioned properly until Buckeye switched to a less expensive label that was not fully compatible with the machine.
Buckeye‘s contentions regarding Appellant‘s personal habits and employment history remain in similar dispute. Buckeye asserts that Appellant took excessive smoking breaks, but other evidence suggests that he had quit smoking before these alleged incidents. Buckeye asserts that it repeatedly warned Appellant about inappropriate behavior around the other employees, but there is no documentary evidence to substantiate this assertion, which Appellant disputes. Buckeye asserts that it demoted Appellant from Gen-
Ultimately, Buckeye has not adduced sufficient undisputed facts to demonstrate that it fired Appellant solely for reasons of job performance. We cannot conclude, at this stage of the proceedings, that Buckeye‘s failure to provide notice did not prejudice Appellant‘s right to reinstatement under the FMLA. Because Buckeye has not demonstrated an absence of a material issue of fact regarding either element of Appellant‘s FMLA claim, summary judgment is inappropriate.
B.
Next, Appellant challenges the district court‘s grant of summary judgment on his claim for age discrimination. The public policy of North Carolina, as stated in
Because Appellant does not put forth any direct or circumstantial evidence of discrimination, we analyze his claim under the burden-shifting framework set forth in McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 U.S. 792, 93 S.Ct. 1817, 36 L.Ed.2d 668 (1973). See Laber v. Harvey, 438 F.3d 404, 430 (4th Cir. 2006). Under this framework, Appellant has the initial burden of proving a prima facie case of discrimination. Hill v. Lockheed Martin Logistics Mgmt., Inc., 354 F.3d 277, 285 (4th Cir. 2004). For purposes of the ADEA, Appellant must show that: (1) he was in the protected age group (i.e., over the age of forty); (2) he was discharged; (3) his job performance met the legitimate expectations of his employer at the time he was fired; and (4) he was replaced by an individual that was substantially younger. Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing Prods., Inc., 530 U.S. 133, 142, 120 S.Ct. 2097, 147 L.Ed.2d 105 (2000).
If Appellant is able to establish each of these elements, the burden then shifts to Buckeye “to articulate a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for the adverse employment action,” Hill, 354 F.3d at 285. If Buckeye carries this burden, Appellant must then show that the “proffered permissible reason ... is actually a pretext for discrimination,” id. Specifically, Appellant must “prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the legitimate reasons offered by [Buckeye] were not its true reasons, but were a pretext for discrimination.” Reeves, 530 U.S. at 143, 120 S.Ct. 2097 (internal quotations omitted).
We turn first to Appellant‘s prima facie case of discrimination. He easily satisfies the first two elements because it is undisputed (1) that he was over the age of forty when he lost his job and (2) that Buckeye fired him. Viewing the facts in the light most favorable to him, as we must at this juncture, we believe that Appellant satisfies the third and fourth elements as well.
With respect to the third element, for summary judgment purposes there is sufficient evidence to establish that Appellant was meeting Buckeye‘s legitimate expectations when he was terminated. Buckeye continuously employed Appellant at a high level of its organization for nearly seven years, and granted him several raises and bonuses during that time. Buckeye gave him significant responsibility for designing, procuring, supervising, troubleshooting, and repairing critical components of the
We likewise conclude that Appellant has adduced sufficient evidence to establish that Buckeye transferred his job duties to younger workers. Appellant, who was 55-years-old when fired by Buckeye, contends that Buckeye transferred some of his job duties to John Classic, a 45-year-old6 employee, and outsourced other of his job duties before hiring Bill Besco, aged forty, to head engineering. Buckeye responds that it eliminated Appellant‘s position, that John Classic‘s duties were materially distinct from Appellant‘s, and that it did not hire a new head of engineering until several years later. There is evidence, however, to refute this characterization. For example, Appellant presented evidence that, after he was fired, Classic assumed certain of Appellant‘s previous duties as liaison to a third-party testing laboratory. In addition, it is undisputed that Buckeye eventually hired a 40-year-old as an engineer. Construing these facts in Appellant‘s favor, we find sufficient evidence to satisfy the fourth element of his ADEA claim.
Because Appellant has established a prima facie case of age discrimination, we turn to Buckeye‘s proffered legitimate nondiscriminatory reason for his firing. Buckeye‘s repeated assertion that it terminated Appellant for poor job performance, based on the same operational problems and personal habits underlying its defense of his FMLA claim, is insufficient for the reasons stated heretofore. Regardless of the relative strength or weakness of Appellant‘s claims, there remain too many disputed issues of material fact to warrant an award of summary judgment.
C.
Appellant next challenges the district court‘s grant of summary judgment in favor of Bryan Bower on the claims of civil conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Appellant based these claims on Bryan Bower‘s alleged threat, allegedly made at Tom Bower‘s behest, to reveal Appellant‘s affair to his wife if he filed this lawsuit. We consider the civil conspiracy and obstruction of justice causes of action separately.
1.
To state a claim for civil conspiracy under North Carolina law, a plaintiff must prove, inter alia, an agreement between two or more individuals to engage in an unlawful act or to accomplish a lawful act in an unlawful manner. Lenzer v. Flaherty, 106 N.C.App. 496, 418 S.E.2d 276, 284-85 (1992). “[T]he evidence of the agreement must be sufficient to create more than a suspicion or conjecture in order to justify submission of the issue to a jury.” Dickens v. Puryear, 302 N.C. 437, 276 S.E.2d 325, 337 (1981). The district court here concluded that Appellant‘s civil conspiracy failed because there was no evidence of an illicit agreement, and we agree.
Appellant has presented no evidence to create anything more than “a suspicion or conjecture” that Bryan Bower entered an illicit agreement to blackmail him into foregoing this lawsuit. Id. Appellant ar-
2.
In North Carolina, it is a common-law civil offense “to do any act which prevents, obstructs, impedes or hinders public or legal justice.” Broughton v. McClatchy Newspapers, Inc., 161 N.C.App. 20, 588 S.E.2d 20, 30 (2003) (internal citations omitted). In Broughton, the North Carolina Court of Appeals affirmed summary judgment on an obstruction-of-justice claim because the “plaintiff presented no evidence that her case was in some way judicially prevented, obstructed, impeded or hindered by the acts of [the] defendants.” Id. Here, the district court relied on Broughton in holding that Appellant‘s obstruction-of-justice claim failed because there was no evidence that Bryan Bower‘s alleged threat impeded or hindered this lawsuit. See Reed, 422 F.Supp.2d at 588-89.
Despite the somewhat cursory conclusion in Broughton, however, there are other North Carolina decisions finding a legally sufficient claim where the defendant attempted to prevent, obstruct, impede, or hinder justice. See e.g., Burgess v. Busby, 142 N.C.App. 393, 544 S.E.2d 4, 12-13 (2001) (upholding obstruction claim relating to medical malpractice case where the names of jurors were circulated by defendant to hospital staff after jury found for injured patient); In re Kivett, 309 N.C. 635, 309 S.E.2d 442, 462 (1983) (finding judge removable for obstruction of justice where he unsuccessfully called on another judge to delay grand jury investigation); see also Jackson v. Blue Dolphin Commc‘ns of N.C., 226 F.Supp.2d 785, 794 (W.D.N.C. 2002) (upholding obstruction claim where defendant fired plaintiff-employee after she refused to give false testimony in an unrelated proceeding); State v. Rogers, 68 N.C.App. 358, 315 S.E.2d 492, 512-13 (1984) (finding sufficient evidence to sustain a conviction of an attorney for attempting to interfere with a witness where the attorney engaged in overt acts designed to induce a witness to leave court so that the attorney could obtain a dismissal of the charges against his client).
We note, as well, that the North Carolina General Statutes setting forth specific crimes under the heading of Obstructing Justice also focus on the acts or attempted acts of the alleged obstructor, rather than the reaction of the victim. See e.g.
Based on our review of the precedent, we conclude that summary judgment was inappropriate here as well. Taking Appellant‘s allegation as true, Bryan Bower‘s action in threatening to reveal compromising correspondence to Appellant‘s wife if he proceeded with this lawsuit was so designed to impede his access to the legal system as to support a claim of obstruction of justice under North Carolina law.
III.
Based on the foregoing, we reverse the district court‘s order granting summary
AFFIRMED IN PART; REVERSED AND REMANDED IN PART.