Jones v. Walgreen Co.

• Decision Date: 01 December 2006
• Docket Number: No. 3:06CV890 (MRK).,3:06CV890 (MRK).
• Citation: 463 F.Supp.2d 267
• Parties: Pamela A. JONES, on behalf of herself an others similarly situated, Plaintiffs, v. WALGREEN, CO., Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Connecticut

463 F.Supp.2d 267

Pamela A. JONES, on behalf of herself an others similarly situated, Plaintiffs, v. WALGREEN, CO., Defendant.

No. 3:06CV890 (MRK).

United States District Court, D. Connecticut.

December 1, 2006.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

John M. Brown, Law Offices of John M. Brown, E. Hartford, CT, for Plaintiff.

Allison Willard, Sari M. Alamuddin, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, L.L.P., Chicago, IL, Hugh F. Murray, III, Murtha Cullina LLP, Hartford, CT, Tammara M. Lovett, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, New York City, for Defendant.

MEMORANDUM OF DECISION

KRAVITZ, District Judge.

Presently pending before the Court is Defendant Walgreens's Motion to Transfer Venue to the Northern District of Illinois [doc. # 6] ("Motion to Transfer"). After weighing the various interests and factors discussed below, the Court concludes that a transfer pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) is appropriate, and therefore the Court grants the Motion to Transfer this case to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

I.

Ms. Jones brings this lawsuit on behalf of herself and "all former and current female employees and female applicants for management positions nationwide and in Puerto Rico" to remedy a "pervasive policy of gender discrimination instituted and maintained by Walgreens" in violation of Title VII, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2, and the Equal Pay Act, 29 U.S.C. § 206(d). Complaint [doe. # 1] ¶ 1. Ms. Jones alleges that Walgreens "practices nationwide (plus Puerto Rico) systemic gender discrimination against its female employees" by engaging in "a continuing pattern and practice of gender discrimination in awarding promotions and more profitable store assignments in favor of male employees." Id. ¶ 11. More specifically, Ms. Jones asserts that Walgreens "segregates female Store Manager employees into lower income and lower volume stores," id. ¶ 12, and that in considering promotions from Store Manager to District Manager, "Walgreens does not give equivalent weight to shelf-stocking ability versus time and personnel management qualifications," all of which results in "a number of adverse career and economic consequences for female management employees," id. ¶ 14, 16. In addition, the Complaint alleges that "any female employee who challenges the disparate manner of treatment" by Walgreens is retaliated against by the company, a practice that Ms. Jones claims is "endemic within Walgreens management culture [and] is typical as to the Class as a whole." Id. ¶ 45. According to the Complaint, the putative class works in more than 5,134 stores in forty-four states (plus Puerto Rico) and includes "all female Walgreens employees, all female applicants for Walgreens Store Manager, all female employees seeking to promote in the `Retail Career Path,' all female Walgreens employees seeking to promote to non-retail corporate positions, and all female Walgreens employees seeking not to be segregated by sex into lower income/lower volume stores." Id. ¶ 17.

The alleged discrimination against Ms. Jones occurred primarily during her eighteen years (1986-2004) of employment as a Walgreens Store Manager in Enfield, Connecticut. See id. ¶ 35. At the time she filed this action, though, Ms. Jones was a resident of Massachusetts. Id. Seeking to remedy the alleged discrimination, Ms. Jones filed a discrimination complaint with the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities (CHRO), along with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), in 2005. See Memorandum of Law in Support of Plaintiff's Objection to Defendant's Motion to Transfer Venue [doc. # 11] at 1. Upon receiving "right-to-sue" letters from the CHRO and EEOC, Ms. Jones filed this lawsuit. See id. at 2. Walgreens rejects all of Ms. Jones's claims and denies that it has "`instituted or maintained' any discriminatory policies or procedures." Memorandum of Law in Support of Defendant's Motion to Transfer Venue [doe. # 7] at 2. Walgreens also challenges Ms. Jones's right to bring this action as a class action. See Answer and Affirmative Defenses [doe. # 5] at 6.

Early in the case, before any discovery or significant court involvement, Walgreens moved to transfer this action to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. In its Motion to Transfer, Walgreens argues that, because Ms. Jones brought her claim as a class action and because she has alleged a pervasive company policy and practice of discrimination against all female employees nationwide, many of the relevant witnesses are situated near Walgreens's corporate headquarters outside of Chicago, in the Northern District of Illinois. In addition, Walgreens asserts that any documents relevant to this alleged nationwide policy would necessarily `De located at its corporate headquarters and that the operative facts underlying development and maintenance of such an alleged nationwide company policy likely occurred at its corporate headquarters as well. Mem. of Law in Supp. of Def.'s Mot. to Transfer [doe. # 7]. Ms. Jones objects to transfer, arguing that only a few Walgreens management personnel would be inconvenienced by having to travel to Connecticut for depositions and trial, that most of the documents are in electronic format and therefore do not justify a transfer, and that the locus of events in Ms. Jones's own case occurred primarily in Connecticut. Therefore, according to Ms. Jones, this Court should retain jurisdiction over her case. See Mem. of Law in Supp. of Pl.'s Objection to Def.'s Mot. to Transfer Venue [doc. # 11] at 3-5.

II.

Section 1404(a) provides that a district court may transfer any civil action to any other district where the action might have been brought "[f]or the convenience of the parties and the witnesses, in the interest of justice." 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a). The purpose of § 1404(a) is "to prevent the waste of time, energy and money and to protect litigants, witnesses and the public against unnecessary inconvenience and expense." Van Dusen v. Barrack, 376 U.S. 612, 616, 84 S.Ct. 805, 11 L.Ed.2d 945 (1964). In considering a motion to transfer, "[d]istrict courts have broad discretion in making determinations of convenience under Section 1404(a) and notions of convenience and fairness are considered on a case-by-case basis." D.H. Blair & Co. v. Gottdiener, 462 F.3d 95, 106 (2d Cir.2006).

A district court must undertake a two-part inquiry in determining whether transfer is appropriate. First, the court must determine whether the action sought to be transferred is one that could Originally have been brought in the transferee district. See 28 U.S.C. § 1404(a) ("[a] district court may transfer any civil action to any other district or division where it might have been brought."). Second, the court must evaluate whether transfer is warranted, considering several specific factors related to "the convenience of the parties and witnesses [and] in the interest of justice." Id. The Second Circuit recently listed seven factors that a court should consider in deciding whether to grant a motion to transfer:

(1) the plaintiffs choice of forum, (2) the convenience of witnesses, (3) the location of relevant documents and relative ease of access to sources of proof, (4) the convenience of parties, (5) the locus of operative facts, (6) the availability of process to compel the attendance of unwilling witnesses, [and] (7) the relative means of the parties.

D.H. Blair & Co., 462 F.3d at 106-07. In addition to these considerations, other courts have identified two additional factors: (1) "the forum's familiarity with the governing law"; and (2) "trial efficiency and the interest of justice, based on the totality of the circumstances." Glass v. S & M NuTec, 456 F.Supp.2d 498, 501 (S.D.N.Y.2006); see also In re Collins & Aikman Corp. Sec. Litig., 438 F.Supp.2d 392, 394 (S.D.N.Y.2006) (listing the same factors). The moving party should make a "clear-cut showing ... that convenience and justice for all parties demands that the litigation proceed elsewhere." Charter Oak Fire Ins. Co. v. Broan-Nutone, LLC, 294 F.Supp.2d 218, 219 (D.Conn.2003) (internal quotation marks omitted). For "unless the balance is strongly in favor of the defendant, the plaintiff's choice of forum should rarely be disturbed." Ford Motor Co. v. Ryan, 182 F.2d 329, 330 (2d Cir. 1950).

III.

Before examining the foregoing factors, the Court must address a threshold issue — namely, when to consider the issue of transfer. While motions to transfer are typically considered at an early stage in a case, and "[v]enue objections are waived if not timely asserted," Smith v. Woosley, 399 F.3d 428, 434 (2d Cir.2005), nothing bars a court from granting a motion to transfer venue at a later stage in a case, see Lencco Racing Co., Inc. v. Arctco, Inc., 953 F.Supp. 69, 70 n. 1 (W.D.N.Y.1997) ("A motion to transfer venue may be made at any time.").

The reason timing is important in this case is that Walgreens's motion is wholly dependent upon the class allegations of Ms. Jones's Complaint. Indeed, Walgreens conceded at oral argument on November 13, 2006 [doc. # 16], that it, would not have sought to transfer this case if Ms. Jones had brought her complaint in her own name only. Thus, it is the class action aspect of this case that, according to Walgreens, makes it appropriate for transfer. Yet, Ms. Jones has not yet moved to certify her case as a class action, and when she does, Walgreens has stated that it will object to certification. As a result, there is certainly no guarantee at this time that Ms. Jones's case will be certified as a class action.¹

Ms. Jones argues that because it "is not a foregone conclusion that the Court will grant the Plaintiffs request for class certification," granting the motion to transfer prior to deciding class certification effectively "put[s] the cart before the horse." Mem. of Law in Supp. of Pl.'s Obj. to Def.'s Mot. to Transfer Venue [doc, # 11] at 2. Walgreens agrees that if this...