Valdivia v. Twp. High Sch. Dist. 214

• Citation: 942 F.3d 395
• Decision Date: 12 November 2019
• Docket Number: No. 19-1410,19-1410
• Parties: Noemi VALDIVIA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT 214, Defendant-Appellant.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (7th Circuit)

942 F.3d 395

Noemi VALDIVIA, Plaintiff-Appellee,

v.TOWNSHIP HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT 214, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 19-1410

United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit.

Argued September 4, 2019

Decided November 12, 2019

Alejandro Caffarelli, Attorney, Caffarelli & Associates Ltd., Chicago, IL, for Plaintiff-Appellee.

Michael E. Kujawa, Attorney, Schain Banks Kenny & Schwartz, Chicago, IL, for Defendant-Appellant.

Before Wood, Chief Judge, and Bauer and Hamilton, Circuit Judges.

Wood, Chief Judge.

Noemi Valdivia worked successfully as an administrative assistant for Township High School District 214, which is headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois, until she began experiencing severe psychological problems that ultimately led to the end of her employment there. She sued the District under the Family and Medical Leave Act ("FMLA"), 29 U.S.C. §§ 2601 -2654, claiming that it interfered with her rights under the Act by failing to provide her with notice or information about her right to take job-protected leave. After a trial over which a magistrate judge presided by consent, see 28 U.S.C. § 636(c), a jury returned a verdict in Valdivia’s favor and awarded her $12,000 in damages. The District then moved for judgment as a matter of law under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 50(b). The district court denied that motion, and the District has now appealed. It takes a lot to set aside a jury verdict, and we conclude that the District has not met that high bar. We thus affirm the judgment.

I

The only issue on appeal is whether the court erred by denying the District’s Rule 50(b) motion. This is a question of law, and thus our consideration is de novo . Tate v. Exec. Mgmt. Servs., Inc. , 546 F.3d 528, 531 (7th Cir. 2008). We view the facts and evidence in the light most favorable to Valdivia, as the litigant who prevailed before the jury. Id. at 531–32.

From May 2010 through June 2016, Valdivia worked for the District as an assistant to the associate principal for instruction at Elk Grove High School. During her time at Elk Grove, Valdivia received excellent performance evaluations. Her supervisors described her as "extremely dependable" and an "invaluable resource," and they said that her work was "immaculate" and "free from error." Valdivia was never disciplined and rarely took sick days.

After learning about a new opening within the District, Valdivia applied for and received a promotion to the post of assistant to the principal at Wheeling High School. She began reporting to Wheeling’s principal, Angela Sisi, in mid-June 2016. Valdivia and Sisi had not worked together previously, but they had been acquainted for several years. Valdivia had worked as an assistant to Sisi’s mother at Elk Grove for eight or nine months, and Sisi’s mother told Sisi that Valdivia was the "best assistant [she] ever had."

Unfortunately, shortly after she started at Wheeling, Valdivia’s mental state began to deteriorate. She had trouble sleeping, eating, and getting out of bed, and she lacked energy. In July her symptoms worsened: she experienced insomnia, weight loss, uncontrollable crying, racing thoughts, an inability to concentrate, and exhaustion. Valdivia began going into work late because she could not drag herself out of bed, and she started leaving work early because she could not control her crying. She applied for other jobs, thinking a different position might help her.

Valdivia did not attempt to conceal these symptoms. To the contrary, she met with Sisi and told Sisi that she was feeling overwhelmed, had lost weight, was not able to sleep, and was not hungry. She also mentioned that she had received an offer for a different job but said that she would probably remain at Wheeling. During this conversation, Sisi tried giving Valdivia a work assignment, but Valdivia pleaded, "[N]o, don't do this to me right now."

About two days after that initial conversation, Valdivia spoke to Sisi again. Once again, she described in detail what was happening to her: "I'm so confused. I'm not eating[.] I'm not sleeping. I've been losing weight. I'm [ ] so overwhelmed. I don't understand what's happening to me." Valdivia also asked Sisi to give her a ten-month position, instead of her twelve-month job, because she thought that time away from the workplace might help. Sisi declined the request, prompting Valdivia to say that she might accept the other job offer.

Shortly thereafter, Valdivia had a third conversation with Sisi. Sisi told Valdivia that she needed to decide whether she was staying or leaving. Valdivia started crying, and the encounter ended inconclusively. Valdivia sought out Sisi four or five more times after that conversation to discuss whether she should accept the other job offer. A few times, Valdivia went home early after one of those conversations, again because of uncontrollable crying. At one point in early August, Valdivia told Sisi that she was considering leaving "for medical reasons," and she again asked for a ten-month job.

Feeling pressure from Sisi to decide whether she was staying at Wheeling or leaving, Valdivia submitted a letter of resignation on Thursday, August 4, 2016; the letter indicated that it would take effect a week later, on August 11, 2016. Almost immediately, Valdivia regretted her decision to resign. On August 9, 2016, she showed up at Sisi’s home early in the morning, crying and asking to rescind her resignation. Sisi, frustrated that Valdivia had woken her children, sent Valdivia to work and denied Valdivia’s request to rescind.

Valdivia’s employment with the District therefore ended on August 11, 2016. That same day, Valdivia scheduled an appointment with her primary care physician, Dr. Lisa Glosson. Dr. Glosson’s records note that Valdivia had been suffering from depression, difficulty falling asleep, difficulty concentrating, loss of appetite, anxiety, and restlessness for several weeks. Dr. Glosson prescribed Xanax for her. The next day, Valdivia began her new job, but she was able to work for only four days before quitting.

On August 21, 2016, Valdivia went to St. Joseph Hospital’s emergency room and informed the doctor that her anxiety and sleeplessness had persisted for a month. She returned to the hospital on August 23, 2016. That time, she was admitted for four days and given medication for anxiety and severe major depressive disorder. On August 31, 2016, Valdivia visited a psychiatrist, Dr. Syed Waliuddin. Based on Valdivia’s reported symptoms, he too diagnosed her with major depressive disorder, single episode, severe, and generalized anxiety disorder. Dr. Waliuddin testified that it would be "difficult for anybody to work" with her symptoms.

II

Congress enacted the FMLA to assist employees in balancing the demands of their jobs with their own medical needs and those of their families. Harrell v. U.S. Postal Serv. , 445 F.3d 913, 918–19 (7th Cir. 2006). The Act’s purpose is to "entitle employees to take reasonable leave for medical reasons ... in a manner that accommodates the legitimate interests of employers." 29 U.S.C. § 2601(b)(2) -(3). To accomplish this goal, the FMLA provides that an eligible employee may take up to twelve (unpaid) workweeks of leave during a twelve-month period if she is unable to perform the functions of her position because of a serious health condition. Id. § 2612(a)(1). An employer may not "interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of or the attempt to exercise" the rights guaranteed by the statute. Id. § 2615(a)(1).

To prevail on an FMLA-interference claim, an employee must establish the following: (1) she was eligible for the FMLA’s protections, (2) her employer was covered by the FMLA, (3) she was entitled to leave under the FMLA, (4) she provided sufficient notice of her intent to take leave, and (5) her employer denied her FMLA benefits to which she was entitled. Burnett v. LFW Inc. , 472 F.3d 471, 477 (7th Cir. 2006). The District argues that the district court erred in denying its motion for judgment as a matter of law because, in its view, no reasonable juror could find that (a) Valdivia was entitled to leave under the FMLA or (b) Valdivia provided the District with adequate notice. We address its arguments in that order.

A

An employee is entitled to FMLA leave if (1) she is afflicted with a "serious health condition," and (2) that condition makes her unable to perform the essential functions of her position. Guzman v. Brown Cnty. , 884 F.3d 633, 638 (7th Cir. 2018). An employee has a "serious health condition" within the meaning of the FMLA when she has "an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition that involves—(A) inpatient care in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care facility; or (B) continuing treatment by a health care provider." 29 U.S.C. § 2611(11).

The evidence in this record was sufficient to support the jury’s finding that Valdivia had a serious health condition. Shortly after she left her job with the District, while she was experiencing symptoms identical to those she had described to Sisi, Valdivia was hospitalized for four days. Extrapolating from that hospitalization, the jury could conclude that while Valdivia was employed by the District, she had a "mental condition" that involved "inpatient care in a hospital." In addition, at trial Valdivia provided detailed testimony describing her condition and the symptoms she experienced from June through August 2016, including insomnia, loss of appetite, weight loss, and uncontrollable crying. Her medical records, which corroborated this testimony, were admitted into evidence. Those records stated that Valdivia suffered from anxiety or depression, or both. Valdivia’s psychiatrist, Dr. Waliuddin, also testified at trial. He diagnosed Valdivia with severe major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder, which he explained meant that Valdivia had exhibited symptoms for at least two weeks. Based on these evidentiary sources, the jury...