Human Rights Com'n v. LaBrie, Inc., 94-230

• Decision Date: 06 October 1995
• Docket Number: No. 94-230,94-230
• Citation: 668 A.2d 659,164 Vt. 237
• Court: Vermont Supreme Court
• Parties: HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION v. LaBRIE, INC., Ernest LaBrie & Linda LaBrie.

Page 659

668 A.2d 659

164 Vt. 237

HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION v. LaBRIE, INC., Ernest LaBrie & Linda LaBrie.

No. 94-230.

Supreme Court of Vermont.

Oct. 6, 1995.

Susan M. Sussman and Barbara Lelli, Montpelier, for plaintiff-appellee.

Oliver L. Twombly, Barre, for defendants-appellants.

Before ALLEN, C.J., and GIBSON, DOOLEY and MORSE, JJ., and DAVENPORT, Superior Judge, Specially Assigned.

ALLEN, Chief Justice.

Defendants LaBrie, Inc., Linda LaBrie and Ernest LaBrie appeal from superior court orders, which held that defendants committed unfair housing practices by discriminating against persons with minor children in violation of 9 V.S.A. § 4503(a). Defendants claim that (1) the court's findings on disparate-treatment discrimination are clearly erroneous because the evidence did not show any intent to discriminate, (2) the court's findings based on plaintiff's experts' testimony should be vacated because the court did not qualify the witnesses as experts, (3) the court erred in awarding damages to a complainant for emotional distress in the absence of expert medical testimony, (4) the court awarded excessive attorney's fees to plaintiff, (5) the court committed plain error by holding Ernest LaBrie personally liable for unfair housing practices, and (6) the court erred in ruling inadmissible certain testimony of defendants' witness, Reine Jenkins. ¹ We affirm.

On May 1, 1981, Linda and Ernest LaBrie purchased Limehurst Mobile Home Park. The Park consists of thirty-three mobile home lots. Most of the residents own their own mobile homes and rent only the lot. LaBrie, Inc. purchased the Park from Ernest and Linda LaBrie on October 30, 1987. Ernest and Linda LaBrie are the sole corporate officers and shareholders of LaBrie, Inc. Ernest LaBrie is the president, and Linda LaBrie is the vice-president and treasurer. The office of LaBrie, Inc. is in their home. The Park is managed primarily by Linda, who is responsible for renting units, collecting rent, and making all general management decisions. She also sets policies, rules, and lease terms, and approves residents for tenancy. Ernest is primarily responsible for maintenance under the direction of Linda but is aware of the decisions made by Linda.

When the LaBries purchased the Park, the lease term on occupancy stated "that only one family shall occupy a mobile home on a permanent basis." In 1982, the LaBries changed the occupancy provision to:

Lessees, who have entered into a lease agreement after April 1, 1982, shall not be permitted to have children under the age of 18 years reside in their mobile home unit. Lessee hereby agrees that lessee shall terminate this lease and vacate the premises prior to having said children reside in their mobile home. (Emphasis added.)

In July 1988, the occupancy provision was essentially the same but stated in addition, "This age restriction applies to all lots at Limehurst Mobile Home Park based on VSA 9-4508(b)."

In April 1989, the occupancy provision was revised to state:

[L]essees who have entered into a lease agreement after July 1, 1988 shall not be permitted to have more than two permanent occupants per lease premises.... Lessees prior to July 1, 1988, who have more than two permanent occupants shall be grandfathered, but the number of occupants cannot expand beyond what existed as of July 1, 1988. (Emphasis added.)

Currently, only one mobile home in the Park houses a family with a minor child. This family moved into the Park prior to 1982. No persons with minor children moved into the Park after the LaBries purchased it, even after the occupancy provision was changed from adults-only to a two-occupant maximum. The population of the Park declined from May 1981 to May 1990, from ninety-five residents to sixty residents. The LaBries also own two other mobile home parks, four homes leased as residential units, and twelve mobile homes throughout Vermont. There are minor children living in many of these homes.

Scott and Luanne McCarthy purchased a mobile home in the Park for $7,000 in August 1986. Linda LaBrie sent them a letter on August 1, 1986, accepting their application, and stating: "We remind you that Limehurst Mobile Home Park is an adult park and if you should have children in the future you will be required to vacate Limehurst Mobile Home Park prior to the arrival of said child." In July 1989, the McCarthys contacted a broker to sell their mobile home because Luanne was pregnant. The broker determined that the McCarthys should ask $18,000 for their home.

The McCarthys' son was born September 18, 1989. When they returned home from the hospital, they found a letter from Linda LaBrie informing them that they must vacate the premises "upon arrival of your third occupant." Following the letter, the McCarthys received telephone calls, visits, and additional letters from Linda LaBrie telling them to vacate the Park. On December 28, 1989, the McCarthys were served with a summons and complaint for eviction brought by the LaBries in the name of LaBrie, Inc. d/b/a Limehurst Mobile Home Park.

When the McCarthys informed the LaBries that they had accepted a deposit for the sale of their home, the LaBries delayed the sale, indicating that they would not act on the purchasers' application until the eviction action was resolved. The purchasers' application was approved February 25, 1990, and the McCarthys sold their mobile home on March 2, 1990, for $13,000. At trial, the broker testified that one-half of potential purchasers were ineligible because a minor child in the family put them over the occupancy limit. There was conflicting evidence regarding the value of the home, but the court determined that the fair market value of the home at the time of the sale was $13,000.

From September 1989 through March 1990, while living at the Park, Luanne McCarthy felt humiliated by Linda LaBrie's demands to vacate the premises. Consequently, she did not leave her home often. She was unable to sleep and had chest pains. The McCarthys moved from the Park to the home of Scott McCarthy's parents, where they had to share a family room in the basement with their newborn child. Luanne McCarthy worried about their inability to find their own housing; her chest pains increased and she was given two medications to relieve stress.

The McCarthys filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission, which commenced this action in Washington Superior Court in October 1990, alleging that defendants LaBrie, Inc., Linda LaBrie, and Ernest LaBrie violated the Fair Housing and Public Accommodations Act, 9 V.S.A. § 4503(a)(1)-(3), by discriminating against persons intending to occupy a dwelling with one or more minor children. The Commission contended that the restrictive occupancy limit for the Park (1) was adopted for the purpose of discriminating against persons with minor children by either limiting or eliminating them from occupancy in the Park, and (2) although facially neutral, has an unlawful discriminatory impact because it excluded persons with minor children in significant numbers. Defendants maintained that the occupancy limit was necessary due to limited water and septic capacity.

At trial, both parties presented expert testimony on the capacity of the septic system and water supply at the Park. Defendants' expert testified that the septic system at the Park was adequate to serve a maximum of sixty-six people. The court found that the expert had not performed the tests necessary to properly assess the potential capacity of the septic system, and concluded that there was no credible evidence that the system could not support an increase in population in the Park. Similarly, the court found that there was no credible evidence that water supply or water pressure was inadequate to serve more than sixty-six people. Although the court acknowledged the LaBries' fear that problems--which had existed prior to installation of a new well and replacement of their leachfields--would reoccur, it concluded that the LaBries have less restrictive alternatives available to them than the two-person occupancy limit.

The court concluded that plaintiff had established that the McCarthys were evicted due to the presence of a minor child, and that persons with minor children were constructively denied access to housing in the Park by the two-person occupancy limit. Further, the court concluded that defendants had not established the occupancy limit as a legitimate business necessity arising from septic and water capacities of the Park. Accordingly, the court held that defendants had violated 9 V.S.A. § 4503(a) and awarded the McCarthys $2,700 in attorney's fees for the eviction proceeding, $1,500 for the emotional distress and humiliation suffered as a result of defendants' actions, $3,000 for loss of civil rights caused by the eviction and by restricting potential purchasers, and $3,000 in punitive damages. The court also awarded the Human Rights Commission civil penalties of $6,000. In subsequent orders, the court permanently enjoined defendants from adopting or enforcing a two-person-per-lot occupancy limit at the Limehurst Mobile Home Park, and awarded plaintiff $51,072 in attorney's fees, $2,194.39 for expenses and $240 for discovery costs. Defendants appeal.

I.

The Vermont Fair Housing and Public Accommodations Act (FHPA), 9 V.S.A. §§ 4500-4507, prohibits discrimination in renting "a dwelling or other real estate to any person because of the race, sex, sexual orientation, age, marital status, religious creed, color, national origin or handicap of a person, or because a person intends to occupy a dwelling with one or more minor children, or because a person is a recipient of public assistance." 9 V.S.A. § 4503(a)(1). Discrimination on the basis of age, or because a person intends to occupy a dwelling with one or more minor children, has been prohibited in the rental of dwelling units in Vermont since 1986. See 1985, No. 175 (Adj.Sess.), § 1 (...