Urban v. Dolgencorp of Texas, Inc.

• Decision Date: 08 December 2004
• Docket Number: No. 03-11276.,03-11276.
• Citation: 393 F.3d 572
• Parties: Debbie URBAN, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. DOLGENCORP OF TEXAS, INC., Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

393 F.3d 572

Debbie URBAN, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. DOLGENCORP OF TEXAS, INC., Defendant-Appellant.

No. 03-11276.

United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.

December 8, 2004.

Rowland B. Foster (argued), Foster & Foster, Anson, TX, for Plaintiff-Appellee.

Joel S. Allen (argued), Baker & McKenzie, William Charles Murley, Littler Mendelson, Dallas, TX, for Defendant-Appellant.

Ann Elizabeth Reesman, McGuiness, Norris & Williams, Washington, DC, for Equal Employment Advisory Council, Amicus Curiae.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

Before DeMOSS, STEWART and CLEMENT, Circuit Judges.

DeMOSS, Circuit Judge:

Appellee Debbie Urban ("Urban") filed suit in the Northern District of Texas, alleging that Appellant Dolgencorp of Texas, Inc. ("Dollar General") terminated her employment in contravention of the Family Medical Leave Act ("FMLA"). The district court granted Urban's motion for summary judgment, finding that Dollar General had not complied with the relevant FMLA regulations regarding Urban's right to cure deficiencies in the medical documentation she submitted supporting her request for leave. Dollar General timely filed the instant appeal. For the reasons discussed below, we REVERSE the district court's granting of summary judgment and RENDER judgment in favor of Dollar General.

BACKGROUND AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Urban began working for Dollar General in May 2001 in Abilene, Texas. In May 2002, Urban, then an assistant store manager in Dollar General's Anson, Texas, store, found it necessary to have bilateral carpal tunnel surgery. The surgery was scheduled to take place on May 28 and May 30, 2002. Sometime before May 28, 2002, Urban informed Dollar General that, because of her upcoming surgery, she was requesting a medical leave of absence pursuant to the FMLA. Urban requested leave that would begin on June 1, 2002, and last through August 24, 2002.

Dollar General informed Urban on or about June 4, 2002, that it was tentatively designating her requested leave of absence as FMLA-qualifying. Urban was notified by Dollar General that it would be necessary for her to produce medical certification from her physician to approve the leave under the FMLA. Dollar General informed Urban that the deadline to return the medical certification form was June 24, 2002. Urban requested from Dollar General, and was granted, a 15-day extension of time within which to return the completed medical certification form, pushing back the deadline to July 9, 2002. Dollar General did not receive Urban's medical certification by July 9, 2002. By letters of July 19 and July 22, 2002, Dollar General advised Urban that her employment was terminated because her 30 days of non-FMLA medical leave provided by company policy had already expired, and the company considered her absences unauthorized.

Urban filed suit in state court in September 2002, alleging that Dollar General terminated her employment in violation of the FMLA. Dollar General removed the action to federal court in October 2002, based upon the existence of a federal question. In June 2003, Urban filed a motion for summary judgment as to liability only, and Dollar General submitted a cross motion for summary judgment. The district court, in August 2003, granted Urban's partial motion for summary judgment, while denying Dollar General's motion.

Dollar General sought an order from the district court certifying for immediate appeal the issue of whether the relevant federal regulations require an employer to provide an employee the opportunity to cure a deficiency in an incomplete medical certification where the deficiency or incompleteness is, in fact, the failure to submit a medical certification in the first place. The district court granted Dollar General's motion, and this Court subsequently granted leave to appeal from the interlocutory order pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1292(b).

STANDARD OF REVIEW

This Court reviews grants of summary judgment de novo, applying the same standard as the district court. Tango Transp. v. Healthcare Fin. Servs. LLC, 322 F.3d 888, 890 (5th Cir.2003). Summary judgment is appropriate if no genuine issue of material fact exists and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). This Court views the evidence and draws all justifiable inferences in a light most favorable to the non-movant. Bodenheimer v. PPG Indus., Inc., 5 F.3d 955, 956 (5th Cir.1993). The non-movant must go beyond the pleadings and come forward with specific facts indicating a genuine issue for trial to avoid summary judgment. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). A genuine issue of material fact exists when the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the non-movant. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). Summary judgment is appropriate, however, if the non-movant "fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party's case." Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548.

DISCUSSION

The FMLA was enacted in 1993, in part, to provide job security for employees with "serious health conditions that prevent them from working for temporary periods." 29 U.S.C. § 2601(a)(4) (1999). To effectuate this goal, the FMLA entitles employees to take reasonable leave for approved medical reasons. Id. § 2601(b)(2). During a 12-month period, an eligible employee may take a total of 12 workweeks of leave in connection with "a serious health condition that makes the employee unable to perform the functions of the position of such employee." Id. § 2612(a)(1)(D). The FMLA also provides that "[a]n employer may require that a request for leave ... be supported by a certification issued by the health care provider of the eligible employee." Id. § 2613(a). If the employer does require medical certification, it must give the employee at least 15 calendar days in which to submit the certification. 29 C.F.R. § 825.305(b) (2002).

Such a medical certification is considered sufficient if it contains certain information, including: (1) the date on which the serious health condition commenced; (2) the probable duration of the condition; (3) the appropriate medical facts within the knowledge of the health care provider regarding the condition; and (4) if the leave is for the employee's own serious health condition, a statement that the employee is unable to perform the functions of his or her job.¹ 29 U.S.C. § 2613(b). If an employer requests such documentation, it is required to notify the employee of the consequences for failing to provide an adequate certification. 29 C.F.R. § 825.301(b)(1)(ii). If the employer finds the certification form incomplete, the employer must advise the employee of the deficiency and provide the employee a reasonable opportunity to cure any such deficiency. Id. § 825.305(d).

It is undisputed that Urban provided Dollar General with proper notice of her intent to request FMLA leave with regard to her carpal tunnel surgeries. Likewise, both parties agree that Dollar General requested medical certification and apprised Urban of the consequences she would face if her medical certification was not timely submitted. The sole issue before this Court, therefore, is whether the curing provision found in § 825.305(d) applies in the instance where an employee fails to submit a medical certification to the employer altogether.

Urban contends that she delivered the required medical certification to her physician and requested that, once completed, the certification be faxed directly to Dollar General. According to Urban, the physician's office apparently misplaced the form and consequently never sent Dollar General a copy of Urban's medical certification. Urban asserts that she was unaware that Dollar General failed to receive her medical certification before the deadline had passed. Urban contends that she did not learn of this fact until she was notified by Dollar General, in the form of two letters dated July 19 and July 22, 2002, that her request for FMLA leave was denied for failing to provide medical certification by the July 9, 2002, deadline. Urban maintains that her "reasonable opportunity to cure any such deficiency," pursuant to § 825.305(d), was entirely dependent upon Dollar General advising her that the certification form had not been received. Urban argues that it was impracticable for her to re-contact her doctor and cure the problem until after she was informed of the failure by Dollar General.

Meanwhile, Dollar General argues that it fully complied with all relevant statutory and regulatory requirements. Dollar General points out that it went as far as granting Urban's request for a 15-day extension of time from the original deadline within which to return the completed medical certification form — an extension that neither the FMLA nor § 825.305(d) requires. Dollar General also suggests that Urban's proffered reason for her untimely submission — that her doctor was at fault for not forwarding the certification to Dollar General — is immaterial. Instead, Dollar General contends, it was Urban's responsibility, as an employee seeking the protections of the FMLA, to ensure that her medical certification was timely filed.

The Fifth Circuit has not addressed whether a certification that is never submitted to the employer may be considered "incomplete" under § 825.305(d). Urban relies upon several cases in support of her position. For instance, Urban cites Jiminez v. Velcro USA, Inc., No. 01-001-JD, 2002 WL 337523 (D.N.H. Mar.4, 2002), for the proposition that the definition of "deficiency" includes "a lack or shortage of required information." Id. at *3 (citation omitted). The employee in Jiminez, however, actually submitted a medical certification to the employer. Id. at *2. The certification was considered "incomplete"...