Henein v. Saudi Arabian Parsons Ltd., No. 85-6128.
| Court | United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (9th Circuit) |
| Writing for the Court | TANG and BRUNETTI, Circuit , and THOMPSON |
| Citation | 818 F.2d 1508 |
| Parties | Gamal S. HENEIN, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. SAUDI ARABIAN PARSONS LIMITED, an unincorporated association, Defendant-Appellee. |
| Docket Number | No. 85-6128. |
| Decision Date | 05 June 1987 |
818 F.2d 1508
Gamal S. HENEIN, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
SAUDI ARABIAN PARSONS LIMITED, an unincorporated association, Defendant-Appellee.
No. 85-6128.
United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.
Argued and Submitted August 6, 1986.
Decided June 5, 1987.
William Foutz, Los Angeles, Cal., for defendant-appellee.
Before TANG and BRUNETTI, Circuit Judges, and THOMPSON,* District Judge.
TANG, Circuit Judge:
Gamal S. Henein appeals a grant of summary judgment to Saudi Arabian Parsons Limited ("SAPL") on various claims arising out of the termination of Henein's employment with SAPL and out of an automobile accident that occurred during the course of that employment. The district court dismissed Henein's declaratory judgment, breach of contract and defamation1 claims, finding his termination justified because the Saudi government ordered the termination and banished Henein from the country for violating its drug laws. The district court dismissed Henein's claims for negligence and misrepresentation because of the lack of admissible evidence, and dismissed his claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress as barred by the applicable statute of limitations. The district court found in the alternative that Henein's claims were barred by his failure to comply with certain grievance procedures provided in the employment contract. We affirm.
I. BACKGROUND
Henein is a citizen of the United States of America, residing in the Central District of California. SAPL is an unincorporated association organized under the laws of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Since 1977, SAPL has performed construction management services for the Royal Commission for Jubail and Yanbu, an agency of the Saudi Arabian Government.
On April 28, 1980, Henein and SAPL entered into a written employment agreement under which Henein was to perform services as a "principal civil engineer" in Saudi Arabia from May 22, 1980 until June 30, 1981. Section 12.1.A of this agreement provided that SAPL could terminate the agreement for cause, including "illegal use of drugs, ... failure to comply with the local customs or laws of Saudi Arabia, ... and conduct ... detrimental to SAPL...." Section 27 of the agreement provided that it constituted "... Employee's entire agreement with SAPL and that no promises or understandings have been made other than those stated ... and that this Agreement shall be subject to modification only by written instrument signed by both SAPL and the Employee."
Prior to executing the contract, Henein was given two informational pamphlets by SAPL. These materials apprised Henein of what to expect in Saudi Arabia, contained information about what he might wish to bring, and advised him that he should carry the prescription if he brought any prescription medicine with him into the country.
On May 14, 1981, Henein was involved in an accident when the automobile he was driving collided with a truck. Henein was hospitalized in Saudi Arabia for extensive injuries. Approximately two weeks after the accident, Henein was transported to Los Angeles where he continued his hospitalization.
During the investigation of the automobile accident, Saudi police discovered restricted drugs in Henein's briefcase in his automobile. The Saudi officials ordered that Henein be removed from Saudi Arabia, his employment terminated, his passport turned over to Saudi authorities, and his
On June 30, 1981, the date on which the employment agreement was due to expire, Henein received a telegram from SAPL that his employment was terminated for cause. The termination for cause deprived Henein of certain benefits to which he would otherwise have been entitled.
On May 13, 1982, Henein filed a complaint against SAPL in district court seeking declaratory relief and damages for breach of contract, negligence, defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and misrepresentation. The complaint was amended on January 3, 1983. SAPL appeared to contest service and moved to dismiss for lack of in personam jurisdiction. The district court denied the motion.2 On July 9, 1984, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of SAPL on Henein's declaratory judgment, breach of contract, and defamation claims. On June 24, 1985, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of SAPL on Henein's negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and misrepresentation claims. The district court also denied Henein's motion for reconsideration of its earlier summary judgment ruling. Final judgment was entered on July 16, 1985. Henein timely appealed on July 19, 1985.
II. QUESTIONS PRESENTED
A. Did the district court err in finding Henein's termination to be justified under the terms of his employment contract?
B. Did the district court err in finding that there was no admissible evidence to support Henein's negligence and misrepresentation claims?
C. Did the district court err in dismissing Henein's claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress?
III. ANALYSIS
This court reviews the grant of summary judgment de novo. Planet Insurance v. Mead Reinsurance Corp., 789 F.2d 668, 670 (9th Cir.1986). "Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Id. California law controls the substantive issues in this diversity case.
A. Did the district court err in finding Henein's termination to be justified under the terms of his employment contract?
The district court held that SAPL was entitled to discharge Henein, pursuant to the unambiguous terms of his employment contract, because the Saudi Arabian government ordered his termination and banished him from the country following the discovery of restricted drugs in his automobile. Henein argues: (1) that SAPL failed to introduce admissible evidence of the Saudi government's banishment order; and (2) that SAPL should not be permitted to rely on the banishment order to justify the termination.
1. Evidence of the Act of Banishment
SAPL relied on the declarations of three of its supervisory employees, Ronald L'Hommedieu, Dave Holleman, and John Mewha, to establish that Saudi Arabia ordered SAPL to terminate Henein's employment and banished Henein from the country. SAPL also relied on Henein's tacit admission that he had been banished in the form of Henein's request that SAPL intercede on his behalf with the Saudi government. Henein produced no evidence disputing these facts;3 instead, Henein challenges the admissibility of SAPL's evidence. We find sufficient admissible evidence of the Saudi government's acts to support summary judgment in this case.
Henein first challenges the admissibility of the declarations as hearsay. Under Fed.
The L'Hommedieu declaration states that a Saudi official with the title of Security Coordinator, Captain Yousif Hijr, told L'Hommedieu to...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Contreras v. City of Chicago, No. 94 C 4201.
...408, 95 L.Ed. 534 (1951)); see also Snyder v. Whittaker Corp., 839 F.2d 1085, 1090 (5th Cir.1988); Henein v. Saudi Arabian Parsons Ltd., 818 F.2d 1508, 1512 (9th Cir.1987). Here, the only significance of the statements allegedly made by the Khamises lies in the fact that they were made, the......
-
Manetti-Farrow, Inc. v. Gucci America, Inc., MANETTI-FARRO
...contract. Trident Center v. Connecticut Gen. Life Ins. Co., 847 F.2d 564, 568 (9th Cir.1988); Henein v. Saudi Arabian Parsons, Ltd., 818 F.2d 1508, 1514 (9th Cir.1987), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 108 S.Ct. 707, 98 L.Ed.2d 657 (1988); Telco Leasing, Inc. v. Transwestern Title Co., 630 F.2d......
-
In Re Bashas' Inc., Nos. 2:09-bk-16050-JMM, 2:09-bk-16051-JMM, 2:09-bk-16052-JMM.
...given debtor and the security associated with a specific debt.” In re Fowler, 903 F.2d 694, 697-99 (9th Cir.1990); see also Camino Real, 818 F.2d at 1508. As noted, the formula approach was recognized by the United States Supreme Court in Till, 541 U.S. at 479-480, 124 S.Ct. 1951. Till reco......
-
In re Cinemas, No. 4:10–bk–14551–JMM.
...given debtor and the security associated with a specific debt.” In re Fowler, 903 F.2d 694, 697–99 (9th Cir.1990); see also Camino Real, 818 F.2d at 1508. As noted, the formula approach was recognized by the United States Supreme Court in Till, 541 U.S. at 479–480, 124 S.Ct. 1951. Till reco......
-
Contreras v. City of Chicago, No. 94 C 4201.
...408, 95 L.Ed. 534 (1951)); see also Snyder v. Whittaker Corp., 839 F.2d 1085, 1090 (5th Cir.1988); Henein v. Saudi Arabian Parsons Ltd., 818 F.2d 1508, 1512 (9th Cir.1987). Here, the only significance of the statements allegedly made by the Khamises lies in the fact that they were made, the......
-
Manetti-Farrow, Inc. v. Gucci America, Inc., MANETTI-FARRO
...contract. Trident Center v. Connecticut Gen. Life Ins. Co., 847 F.2d 564, 568 (9th Cir.1988); Henein v. Saudi Arabian Parsons, Ltd., 818 F.2d 1508, 1514 (9th Cir.1987), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 108 S.Ct. 707, 98 L.Ed.2d 657 (1988); Telco Leasing, Inc. v. Transwestern Title Co., 630 F.2d......
-
In Re Bashas' Inc., Nos. 2:09-bk-16050-JMM, 2:09-bk-16051-JMM, 2:09-bk-16052-JMM.
...given debtor and the security associated with a specific debt.” In re Fowler, 903 F.2d 694, 697-99 (9th Cir.1990); see also Camino Real, 818 F.2d at 1508. As noted, the formula approach was recognized by the United States Supreme Court in Till, 541 U.S. at 479-480, 124 S.Ct. 1951. Till reco......
-
In re Cinemas, No. 4:10–bk–14551–JMM.
...given debtor and the security associated with a specific debt.” In re Fowler, 903 F.2d 694, 697–99 (9th Cir.1990); see also Camino Real, 818 F.2d at 1508. As noted, the formula approach was recognized by the United States Supreme Court in Till, 541 U.S. at 479–480, 124 S.Ct. 1951. Till reco......