Ezold v. Wolf, Block, Schorr and Solis-Cohen

• Decision Date: 29 November 1990
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 90-0002.
• Citation: 751 F. Supp. 1175
• Parties: Nancy O'Mara EZOLD v. WOLF, BLOCK, SCHORR AND SOLIS-COHEN.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania

751 F. Supp. 1175

Nancy O'Mara EZOLD v. WOLF, BLOCK, SCHORR AND SOLIS-COHEN.

Civ. A. No. 90-0002.

United States District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania.

November 29, 1990.

Judith P. Vladeck, New York City, for plaintiff.

Mark S. Dichter, Philadelphia, Pa., for defendant.

AMENDED MEMORANDUM

JAMES McGIRR KELLY, District Judge.

The court has now considered the testimony that has been presented in this case and is prepared to make its Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law and decision.

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. Plaintiff Nancy Ezold has alleged that Wolf, Block, Schorr and Solis-Cohen ("Wolf, Block" or "the Firm") discriminated against her on the basis of her sex in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e, et seq., when it decided not to admit her to the partnership. Ms. Ezold also alleged that she was constructively discharged by Wolf, Block on account of her sex by reason of the adverse partnership decision. In addition, Ms. Ezold alleged a claim under the Equal Pay Act, 29 U.S.C. § 206(d), of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. § 201, et seq. The Court has jurisdiction over this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f)(3).

2. Prior to trial, with the agreement of the parties, the Court bifurcated the issues of liability and damages.

3. In addition, the Court severed Ms. Ezold's claim under the Equal Pay Act pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 42(b).

4. Ms. Ezold graduated from Villanova Law School in 1980. She graduated 61st out of a class of 194, and was not a member of the Villanova Law Review.

5. Subsequent to her graduation from law school, Ms. Ezold worked at the Law Firm of Kirschner, Walters & Willig from 1980 to 1981. She was involved primarily in the representation of union members through their union legal services plan in personal matters such as workers' compensation, domestic relations and real estate settlements.

6. From 1981 to July, 1983, Ms. Ezold worked at the law firm of Phillips and Phelan. This firm had two attorneys besides the plaintiff.

7. The defendant Firm hires associates on one of two categories — partnership track and non-partnership track. The plaintiff was hired by the defendant as an associate on a partnership track basis in 1983.

8. The defendant Firm was fully aware of the plaintiff's background when it hired her. There were no objections by anyone on the defendant Firm's hiring committee to the plaintiff's hiring or placing her on a partnership track.

9. Wolf, Block is a law firm based in Philadelphia which, as of 1989, was comprised of 249 attorneys, approximately one-half of whom were partners. Wolf, Block has a number of departments, including real estate, corporate, litigation, taxation, estates and labor. During the time Ms. Ezold worked at Wolf, Block, the Litigation Department grew from 36 to 55 attorneys.

10. Wolf, Block is governed by a 5-member Executive Committee which is responsible for establishing policy for the Firm and for operating the Firm on a day-to-day basis. The Executive Committee's members are elected by the Firm's voting partners.

11. Wolf, Block has a 10-member Associates Committee which includes partners from each of the Firm's departments. The members of the Associates Committee are appointed by the Executive Committee.

12. The Associates Committee is responsible for, inter alia, reviewing the performance and evaluations of all of the Firm's associates and making recommendations to the Firm's Executive Committee as to salary and as to which associates should be admitted to the partnership.

13. The Executive Committee reviews the partnership recommendations of the Associates Committee and, in turn, exercises its own discretion in making partnership recommendations to the entire partnership. Only those persons who have been recommended for partnership by the Executive Committee are considered for admission to the partnership by the Firm's voting partners, upon whom rests the sole and ultimate responsibility for determining who is elected to the partnership.

14. The defendant Firm hires many associates immediately after their graduation from law school or completion of a judicial clerkship (referred to as "non-laterals"). Non-laterals are considered for partnership approximately 7½ years after their graduation from law school. Other associates, referred to as "laterals," are hired after they have had experience working at other law firms or in other post-law school employment, and are generally subject to a five-year rule for partnership consideration.

15. Until 1989, certain associates of an experience level to be admitted to a partnership were accorded "special partner" status. Such individuals, in contrast to other partners (referred to as "regular" partners), do not have the right to vote or to receive any equity share in the partnership, are subject to removal by the Executive Committee, and have benefits which are inferior to those provided to regular partners.

16. In the Spring of 1983, Ms. Ezold applied for employment at Wolf, Block. She met initially with Seymour Kurland, who was then the Chairman of the Litigation Department.

17. From 1983 until 1987, Mr. Kurland was the chair of the Litigation Department. Thereafter Alan Davis served as chair of the Litigation Department.

18. In 1983, Ms. Ezold was offered a position as an associate in Wolf, Block's Litigation Department. During the selection process, she had meetings and telephone conversations with Mr. Kurland, who said that her prior work experience helped make her an attractive candidate to do litigation for Wolf, Block. Mr. Kurland told Ms. Ezold that it would not be easy for her at Wolf, Block because she did not fit the Wolf, Block mold since she was a woman, had not attended an Ivy League law school, and had not been on law review. Mr. Kurland and Ms. Ezold stated that at one of the meetings with Ms. Ezold, only Ms. Ezold and he were present.

19. Subsequent to the aforementioned meeting, but before accepting Wolf, Block's offer of employment, Ms. Ezold had lunch with Roberta Liebenberg and Barry Schwartz, who were both members of the Litigation Department. Ms. Ezold admitted she did not mention to them the statement by Mr. Kurland that she would have a difficult time at Wolf, Block because she is a woman, did not ask them any questions about the treatment of women at Wolf, Block, and did not express to them any concern over the Firm's treatment of women.

20. Ms. Ezold began working at Wolf, Block in July, 1983 and was assigned to the Firm's Litigation Department.

21. From 1983 until 1987 Mr. Kurland was responsible for assignment of work to associates in the Litigation Department, a duty he delegated in part to partner Steven Arbittier. Thereafter Mr. Davis assumed primary responsibility for distribution of work to associates in the Department.

22. Ms. Ezold handled various matters for the defendant during her tenure at Wolf, Block. She worked for partners in the Litigation Department on criminal matters, insurance cases, general commercial litigation and other areas, and also did work for some partners in other departments. She handled matters at all stages of litigation, and was called upon by partners to go to court on an emergency basis.

23. Ms. Ezold routinely researched and drafted briefs and pleadings on the matters on which she worked, and during the last two years of her employment at Wolf, Block, supervised junior associates in their preparation of briefs and pleadings.

24. Mr. Arbittier primarily assigned the plaintiff to civil actions that were small cases by Wolf, Block standards, and a variety of criminal matters.

25. For example, in 1983, Mr. Arbittier assigned the plaintiff, together with an associate, Mr. McCullough, responsibility for a large group of minor cases previously handled by Steve Levin, an associate who had worked on such matters and had left the Firm.

26. Thereafter, the plaintiff was given responsibility for ten to fifteen bankruptcy matters involving collections of $400 or less.

27. Ms. Ezold did not work for more than 500 hours on any one matter in any year according to the defendant's computer-maintained time records. In contrast, virtually all the male associates in the department worked on major matters for which they logged at least 600 hours per year.

28. The plaintiff attended regular assignment meetings in the Litigation Department where she had the opportunity to observe the assignments being given to male associates. She learned at such meetings of the informal procedure by which partners spoke directly to certain associates to assign them responsibilities bypassing the formal assignment procedure.

29. During one such meeting, Mr. Arbittier asked for a volunteer to work on a preliminary injunction. Although Ms. Ezold was the only associate to volunteer, and was initially assigned the case, within an hour Mr. Arbittier, without explanation, had reassigned it to a male associate.

30. The plaintiff complained about the quality of her assignments in civil matters to the Litigation Department partners who assigned cases to associates. The plaintiff also objected to being assigned to work with only a very limited number of partners. Mr. Kurland acknowledged that most of the work opportunities given to the plaintiff were inferior and promised that the problem would be corrected.

31. Part of the negative impression concerning the plaintiff's performance was an impression that she was "not a team player," "institutionally disloyal," and that she "bad mouthed" the Firm to young associates. The only basis of this criticism advanced by the defendant Firm was the plaintiff's perceived concern about women's issues, such as the Firm's treatment of paralegals, who were virtually all female and the Firm's treatment of part-time attorneys who were all female.

32. The defendant claimed that the plaintiff lacked the intellectual capacity required for partnership at the Firm. In a...