871 F.2d 22 (4th Cir. 1989), 88-3976, English v. General Elec. Co.
| Court | United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (4th Circuit) |
| Citation | 871 F.2d 22 |
| Date | 03 April 1989 |
| Parties | Vera M. ENGLISH, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, Defendant-Appellee, Government Accountability Project, Amicus Curiae. Vera M. ENGLISH, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, Defendant-Appellant, Government Accountability Project, Amicus Curiae. |
| Docket Number | 88-3982.,88-3976 |
Page 22
Argued Dec. 5, 1988.
M. Travis Payne (Edelstein and Payne, Raleigh, N.C., Mozart G. Ratner, Washington, D.C., on brief), for appellant/cross-appellee.
Peter G. Nash (Dixie L. Atwater, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak and Stewart, Washington, D.C., William W. Sturges, Weinstein & Sturges, Charlotte, N.C., on brief), for appellee/cross-appellant.
(Stephen M. Kohn, Michael D. Kohn, Government Accountability Project, on brief), for amicus curiae.
Before RUSSELL, WIDENER and HALL, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
In this diversity action, Vera M. English appeals the district court's order dismissing her complaint on the ground that her state tort claim was preempted by federal law. The defendant, General Electric Company ("G.E."), cross-appeals from the district court denial of its motion to dismiss English's claim on the alternative ground that such claim failed to state a cause of action under North Carolina law. Finding no error, we affirm.
English was employed by G.E. as a laboratory technician at a nuclear fuel production facility in North Carolina. In February, 1984, she complained to both the Nuclear Regulatory Commission ("NRC") and her supervisors at the G.E. facility regarding what she believed to be serious violations of NRC safety standards. When no corrective action was taken, she deliberately failed to clean up radiation contamination
Page 23
at her work station in an effort to prove to her supervisor that such contamination was not being detected by the facility's safety inspectors. Although her efforts led to corrective action, she was disciplined by the company for her failure to clean up contamination of which she was aware. It is the measures allegedly taken by G.E. to discipline her that formed the basis for her tort claim of intentional infliction of emotional distress. 1
The district court held that English had, under North Carolina law, stated a good cause of action for the tort of intentional infliction of emotional distress. However, the court further determined that the...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
881 F.2d 1144 (1st Cir. 1989), 89-1019, Norris v. Lumbermen's Mut. Cas. Co.
...Some have found preemption: English v. General Electric Co., 683 F.Supp. 1006 (E.D.N.C.1988), aff'd per curiam on basis of decision below, 871 F.2d 22 (4th Cir.1989); Snow v. Bechtel Constr. Inc., 647 F.Supp. 1514 (C.D.Cal.1986); Chrisman v. Philips Indus., Inc., 242 Kan. 772, 751 P.2d 140 ......
-
570 A.2d 1289 (N.J.Super.A.D. 1990), Maher v. New Jersey Transit Rail Operations, Inc.
...493 U.S. 876, 110 S.Ct. 213, 107 L.Ed.2d 166 (1989), relied upon by N.J. Transit, inapplicable. See also English v. General Elec. Co., 871 F.2d 22, 23 (4th Cir.1989), cert. granted 493 U.S. 1055, 110 S.Ct. 862, 107 L.Ed.2d 946 (1990) holding that a state law claim alleging a retaliatory dis......
-
711 F.Supp. 988 (N.D.Cal. 1989), C-89-0770, Gaballah v. PG & E
...103 S.Ct. at 1722. The issue of conflict was addressed in English v. General Elec. Co., 683 F.Supp. 1006, 1013-14 (E.D.N.C.1988), aff'd, 871 F.2d 22 (4th Cir.1989). Relying on subsection (g), which bars relief under section 210 for any employee who, without direction from the employer, inte......
-
895 F.2d 1295 (10th Cir. 1990), 88-1345, Masters v. Daniel Intern. Corp.
...in this circuit. Other circuits which have ruled on this issue have reached differing conclusions. In English v. General Electric Co., 871 F.2d 22 (4th Cir.1989) the Court found that the Energy Reorganization Act was intended by Congress to be the exclusive remedy for employees who allege d......