Campbell v. National R.R. Passenger Corp.

• Decision Date: 06 September 2001
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 99-2979(EGS).
• Citation: 163 F.Supp.2d 19
• Parties: Kenneth CAMPBELL, et al., Plaintiffs, v. NATIONAL RAILROAD PASSENGER CORPORATION (AMTRAK), et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — District of Columbia Circuit

163 F.Supp.2d 19

Kenneth CAMPBELL, et al., Plaintiffs, v. NATIONAL RAILROAD PASSENGER CORPORATION (AMTRAK), et al., Defendants.

Civil Action No. 99-2979(EGS).

United States District Court, District of Columbia.

September 6, 2001.

Timothy R. Fleming, Robert F. Childs Jr., Scott A. Gilliland, Lee D. Winston, Jon

C. Goldfarb, Bryon R. Perkins, Derek B. Brett, Gordon, Selberman, Wiggins & Childs, P.C., Washington, DC, for plaintiffs.

Thomas Reinert, Grace Speights, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, Washington, DC, for National Railroad Passengers Corp.(AMTRAK)

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

SULLIVAN, District Judge.

Plaintiffs filed a class action complaint against defendant National Railroad Passenger Corporation ("Amtrak") alleging that they, and the class they seek to represent, were subjected to a systematic pattern and practice of racial discrimination. Pending before this Court is Amtrak's motion to dismiss, or, in the alternative, for a more definite statement. Upon consideration of the motion, the opposition thereto, case law, and the argument in open court, it is hereby

ORDERED that the motion to dismiss is DENIED; and it is

FURTHER ORDERED that the motion for a more definite statement is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART.

I. BACKGROUND

Current and former union represented employees of Amtrak and applicants for union represented positions filed suit against Amtrak and fifteen unions. They assert their individual claims and seek to represent two classes. Plaintiffs allege that they were subjected to a systemic pattern and practice of racial discrimination and racial harassment. The allegedly discriminatory policies, practices, and procedures present claims relating to discrimination in hiring, advancement, training, discipline, work and equipment assignments, and terms and conditions of employment, as well as, hostile working conditions based on race.

II. MOTION TO DISMISS

Amtrak moves to dismiss individual claims for each of the following independent reasons: 1) certain 42 U.S.C. § 1981 claims are barred by the statute of limitations; 2) claims of plaintiffs who previously filed a charge involving the same conduct complained of here, but failed to sue, are barred by the statute of limitations in their right-to-sue letters; 3) certain Title VII claims are barred by the statute of limitations; and 4) claims which do not allege a timeframe fail to state Title VII claims.¹ Amtrak also moves for a more definite statement with respect to certain allegations. Plaintiffs incorrectly assert that Amtrak's motion to dismiss should be converted to a summary judgment motion; therefore, plaintiffs' request for discovery to respond to a motion for summary judgment is denied.²

A. Statute of Limitations for § 1981 Claims

Plaintiffs allege that "Amtrak has discriminated against the named Plaintiffs and all members of the proposed classes by denying them the same rights as are enjoyed by white non-exempt employees and applicants for non-exempt employment in the making, performance, modifications and termination of their employment relationship with Amtrak and to the enjoyment of all benefits, privileges, terms and conditions of that relationship, in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, as amended." Plaintiffs raised, but the parties did not adequately address, whether the statute of limitations for § 1981 claims are subject to the statute of limitations borrowed from D.C.Code § 12-301(8), which is three years, or the federal four-year default statute of limitations, 28 U.S.C. § 1658. The Court requested additional briefing on this issue. In the supplemental briefing the parties contested the applicability of 28 U.S.C. § 1658 to 42 U.S.C. § 1981 claims. The issues are framed as follows: 1) whether 28 U.S.C. § 1658 applies to any cause of action arising under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, as amended by the Civil Rights Act of 1991, P.L. 102-166 § 101, 105 Stat 1071 (1991); and 2) if 28 U.S.C. § 1658 does apply to claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, to which claims does it apply.

Courts considering claims under § 1981 have historically applied the state personal injury statute of limitations because § 1981 does not contain a statute of limitations, see Goodman v. Lukens Steel Co., 482 U.S. 656, 107 S.Ct. 2617, 96 L.Ed.2d 572 (1987). Plaintiffs argue that this well-settled proposition was altered by Congress' enactment of the federal default statute of limitations, and then the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1991. Section 1658 states that

[e]xcept as otherwise provided by law, a civil action arising under an Act of Congress enacted after the date of the enactment of this section [December 1, 1990] may not be commenced later than 4 years after the cause of action accrues.

The Civil Rights Act of 1866 was amended in 1991 by the Civil Rights Act of 1991. Before 1991, § 1981 stated that:

[a]ll persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall have the same right in every State and Territory to make and enforce contracts, to sue, be parties, give evidence, and to the full and equal benefit of all laws and proceedings for the security of persons and property as is enjoyed by white citizens, and shall be subject to like punishment, pains, penalties, taxes, licenses, and exactions of every kind, and to no other.

The pre 1991 statute protected only two rights: the right to make contracts, which "extend[ed] only to the formation of a contract, but not to problems that may arise later from the conditions of continuing employment," and the right to enforce contracts, which "embrace[d] protection of a legal process, and of a right of access to legal process, that will address and resolve contract law claims without regard to race." Patterson v. McLean Credit Union, 491 U.S. 164, 176-177, 109 S.Ct. 2363, 105 L.Ed.2d 132 (1989).

The Civil Rights Act of 1991, which became law on November 21, 1991, revised § 1981, making the language quoted above subsection (a) and adding two new subsections:

(b) "Make and enforce contracts" defined

For purposes of this section, the term "make and enforce contracts" includes the making, performance, modification, and termination of contracts, and the enjoyment of all benefits, privileges, terms, and conditions of the contractual relationship.

(c) Protection against impairment

The rights protected by this section are protected against impairment by nongovernmental discrimination and impairment under color of State law.

It is clear that the Civil Rights Act of 1991 created at least one new cause of action that was not cognizable under the pre 1991 version of the statute. See Rivers v. Roadway Express, Inc., 511 U.S. 298, 313, 114 S.Ct. 1510, 128 L.Ed.2d 274 (1994).

A review of the ways in which this pea has been split highlights the difficulty of this issue. Compare Nealey v. Univ. Health Serv., 114 F.Supp.2d 1358 (S.D.Ga. 2000) (applying § 1658 to § 1981); Brown v. Jenny Craig Weight Loss Ctr., 2000 WL 989918 (S.D.Ohio May 2, 2000) (same); Rodgers v. Apple South, Inc. 35 F.Supp.2d 974 (W.D.Ky.1999) (same); Miller v. Federal Express Corp., 56 F.Supp.2d 955 (W.D.Tenn.1999) (same); Stewart v. Coors Brewing Co., 1998 WL 880462 (D.Colo. Dec.14, 1998) (same) and Alexander v. Precision Machining Inc., 990 F.Supp. 1304 (D.Kan.1997)(same) with Madison v. IBP, Inc., 257 F.3d 780, ___ (8th Cir. 2001) (finding § 1658 not applicable to a § 1981 action); Zubi v. AT&T, 219 F.3d 220 (3rd Cir.2000) (same); Hall v. Flight-Safety Int'l, Inc., 106 F.Supp.2d 1171 (D.Kan.2000); Lasley v. Hershey Foods Corp., 35 F.Supp.2d 1319 (D.Kan. 1999)(same); Mohankumar v. Dunn, 59 F.Supp.2d 1123 (D.Kan.1999)(same); Lane v. Ogden Entertainment, Inc., 13 F.Supp.2d 1261 (M.D.Ala.1998) (same); and Davis v. State of Cal. Dept. of Corr., 1996 WL 271001 (E.D.Cal. Feb.23, 1996). This Circuit has yet to address this issue.³

Only two Circuits have addressed this issue⁴ and the district courts are split. The Third Circuit, in Zubi, recognized three distinct approaches in the case law. 219 F.3d at 222. The first approach holds that when an Act of Congress creates a claim that did not previously exist, even if this is done by amending a previously existing statute, § 1658 applies. See id. This approach results in § 1981 claims based on the discriminatory termination of contract being governed by the four-year limitations in § 1658, and all other claims based on § 1981 being governed by the analogous state statute. The second approach holds that when an Act of Congress amends an existing statute in a manner that substantially alters its meaning, § 1658 applies to all claims accruing after the passage of the new statute without regard to whether an identical claim arising earlier could have been successfully pursued under the prior statute. See id. This view would apply § 1658 to all § 1981 claims being governed by the four-year federal limitations period. The third approach holds that when an Act of Congress amends a statute existing before the date, as opposed to creating new law without reference to previously existing statutory language, § 1658 does not apply to all claims accruing after the amendment without regard to whether an identical claim arising earlier could have been successfully pursued under the prior statute. See id.

Since statutory amendments become law only when an Act is enacted by congress, an "Act of Congress" can reasonably be read to include any legislative measure that amends preexisting statutory text. However, the treatment of every amendment to an existing statute as an "Act of Congress" for purposes of § 1658 could change the statute of limitations period for many causes of action that were viable before the effective date of § 1658. Congress did mandate that § 1658 would be applicable to federal causes of action viable before the effective date of § 1658. Congress valued the avoidance of frustrated expectations more highly than the national uniformity it sought through the passage of §...