Granfield v. Catholic University of America, s. 74--1151
| Decision Date | 29 January 1976 |
| Docket Number | 74--1152,Nos. 74--1151,s. 74--1151 |
| Parties | 11 Empl. Prac. Dec. P 10,628, 174 U.S.App.D.C. 183 David J. K. GRANFIELD, Appellant, v. The CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA, a District of Columbia Corporation. Joseph A. BRODERICK, Appellant, v. The CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA, a District of Columbia Corporation. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — District of Columbia Circuit |
Benjamin P. Lamberton, Cambridge, Mass., for appellant David Granfield.
Samuel J. Murray, New York City, for appellant Joseph A. Broderick. William R. Joyce, Jr., Washington, D.C., was on the brief.
Alfred L. Scanlan, Washington, D.C., with whom James R. Bieke, Stephen A. Trimble and Nicholas D. Ward, Washington, D.C., were on the brief, for appellee.
Before BAZELON, Chief Judge, LEVENTHAL, Circuit Judge and JUSTICE, * United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Texas.
Opinion for the Court filed by District Judge JUSTICE.
JUSTICE, District Judge:
INTRODUCTION:
The Catholic University of America is a private educational institution located in Washington, D.C. 1 Historically, the University has maintained a disparity between the salaries which it has paid its lay faculty members and those paid to clerical faculty members. 2 According to the appellee, this lower salary scale or 'clerical discount' is a form of financial support for the University deliberately chosen by the Catholic Bishops. 3 It is the application of the clerical discount to their salaries which appellants attack in this civil action, both on constitutional and on contractual grounds. Prior to consideration of the appellants' first amendment contentions, we must assess the contractual claims of the priests in order to avoid, if possible, resolution of the controversy on constitutional grounds. See, e.g., Ashwander v. Valley Authority, 297 U.S. 288, 346--347, 56 S.Ct. 466, 482--483, 80 L.Ed. 688 (1936) (concurring opinion of Brandeis, J.).
Appellant David J. K. Granfield is a tenured professor of law at the University's Columbus School of Law, having been a member of the law school faculty since 1960. Granfield is a Roman Catholic priest and a member of the Benedictine Order. Appellant Joseph A. Broderick is also a tenured professor at the law school; he has been on the faculty since 1963, achieving tenure in 1969. Broderick is a priest in the Order of Preachers (Dominicans).
At Catholic University, the deans of the various schools are appointed by the President. The Dean of the Law School has authority to prepare a proposed budget for his school and to make recommendations concerning faculty salaries. The Executive Vice-President and Provost of the University must approve the proposed budget for the Law School; while this approval is not final, it provides a basis under which the Dean can make plans for the forthcoming academic year. Final authority over the budget resides in the Board of Trustees.
There are no formal written agreements between the University and the faculty members as to terms of employment. Official notification setting forth the terms of employment is by 'letter of appointment.' 4 Both appellants testified at the trial that they received letters of appointment at the beginning of each academic year in which there was some change in their rank or salary.
As early as 1945, the University's Board of Trustees considered implementing a policy of salary parity between lay and clerical faculty. However, it was not until 1968 that efforts to achieve full parity appeared to come near realization. Against a background of 'institutional declericalization', 5 the priest-professors at Catholic University had accelerated their agitation for salary equalization. The Board of Trustees was aware that, if parity were not to be adopted, a number of clerical faculty members planned to leave the University to obtain full salaries elsewhere. 6 The faculty pressure culminated on February 8, 1968, when the Academic Senate 7 adopted a resolution requesting the Board of Trustees to institute a policy of parity and to 'implement this policy without delay'. Then, on September 12, 1968, the Finance Committee of the Board of Trustees reported that it 'favored putting the salaries of clerical members of the faculty on a parity with lay members.' At a meeting of the Board of Trustees on December 6--7, 1968, the Finance Committee, along with the Committee on Academic Affairs, resolved
to go on record as still considering the desired goal in faculty salaries to be the A level of the AAUP (American Association of University Professors) scale--not Plan A--including, eventually, placing the salaries of clerical members of the faculty on a parity with lay teachers. (Italics added.)
The minutes of this meeting show a notation immediately following the above resolution:
The Committees, however, faced the straitened 1969--1970 financial situation. Its realities make it impossible to implement Plan B as submitted by the Academic Senate.
At this meeting, the formal recommendation of the Committees was to retain the salary scale then in effect, using available funds for new personnel and merit increments for the faculty. This recommendation was approved by the Board of Trustees.
On December 12, 1968, Acting President Nivard Scheel reported to the Academic Senate that the Board of Trustees, at the December 6--7 meeting, had
approved a recommendation submitted jointly by its Committees on Academic Affairs and Finance that the AAUP 'A' scale, and parity of clerical and lay salaries be achieved as soon as possible. However, because of limited revenues, 'Plan B' cannot be achieved next year. Income from the rise in tuition will therefore be used to (a) maintain present salary scale, (b) permit recruitment of new administrative This announcement by Acting President Scheel is at the heart of appellants' contention that the University promised adoption of a parity salary scale or made representations upon which they reasonably and detrimentally relied. On two subsequent occasions, Scheel addressed faculty meetings, expressing his understanding that parity had been accepted by the trustees in principle, and that implementation of the policy was a matter of immediate priority. Other members of the administration also believed that the Board of Trustees had adopted the principle of parity. Scheel's successor, President Walton, told a meeting of clerical faculty members that:
and faculty personnel, and (c) allow for merit increases to selected members of the faculty. (Italics added.)
The University aims to raise their salaries to parity: to 75% of parity in 1971--72; 85% in 1972--73; and 100% in 1973--74. (Italics added.)
This representation is reflected in the minutes of the June 6, 1970, Board of Trustees meeting. On November 23, 1970, President Walton, writing to two priest faculty members of a committee the trustees had appointed to review the party issue, repeated the foregoing schedule and stated:
Since the principle of parity has been accepted by the Board I do not believe that the Board intends to repudiate that principle.
The move toward parity ended abruptly on December 12, 1970, when, spurred by an influential trustee, the Board passed a 'just compensation' resolution, which appellants characterize as, and appellee concedes was, a clear repudiation of parity as an official University policy.
Interpretation of the action taken by the Board of Trustees at the December 6--7, 1968, meeting is of great significance in evaluating appellants' claims. Clearly, Acting President Scheel and other administrators believed the University had committed itself to institute a parity salary scale, when feasible. The Administrative Bulletin is a publication compiled by the University's Office of the Provost, and is a general source of information for the University community. Its December 16, 1968, issue reported the following as to the Board's action at the December 6--7 meeting:
After consideration of faculty salary proposals presented at a previous meeting, the Board (1) affirmed acceptance as a goal of the A--level standard of the American Association of University Professors and elimination of the present disparity between scales for clerical and religious and for lay members of the faculty; (2) directed that normal salary increments under the present scale should be continued during 1969--70; and (3) directed, that after such increments, funds remaining from increased tuition income should be used for salaries of new administrative and faculty personnel and for merit increments to present members of the faculty. (Italics added.)
Based upon the announcements and representations of University officials mentioned above, both appellants contend, inter alia, that Catholic University should be estopped from denying that the clerical scale would no longer be applicable in determining their salaries. Appellants also contend they should be found to have enforceable contracts which provide for salaries unaffected by the 'clerical discount.'
The district court was of the opinion that Father Granfield's strongest claim was based upon the doctrine of promissory estoppel. The elements of the promissory estoppel doctrine are authoritatively set forth in the Restatement, Contracts § 90 (1932):
A promise which the promisor should reasonably expect to induce action or forbearance of a definite and substantial character on the part of the promisee and which does induce such action or forbearance is binding if injustice can be avoided only by enforcement of the promise. 8
The Restatement formulation has been applied by this court. See, e.g., N. Lotterio & Co. v. Glassman Construction Co., 115 U.S.App.D.C. 335, 319 F.2d 736 (1963).
The promissory estoppel doctrine of the Restatement would seem to erect four conceptual hurdles for...
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