Roush v. Kartridge Pak Co.

• Decision Date: 14 December 1993
• Docket Number: No. 3-91-CV-30147.,3-91-CV-30147.
• Citation: 838 F. Supp. 1328
• Parties: Mary Lou ROUSH, Plaintiff, v. KARTRIDGE PAK CO., Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of Iowa

838 F. Supp. 1328

Mary Lou ROUSH, Plaintiff, v. KARTRIDGE PAK CO., Defendant.

No. 3-91-CV-30147.

United States District Court, S.D. Iowa, Davenport Division.

December 14, 1993.

James L. Ottesen, Davenport, IA, for plaintiff.

Roger L. Strandlund and Robert P. Boeye, Califf & Harper, P.C., Moline, IL, for defendant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT

BENNETT, United States Magistrate Judge.

                                                          TABLE OF CONTENTS
                  I. PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND.                                                         1329
                 II. SUMMARY JUDGMENT STANDARDS.                                                    1330
                III. FACTUAL FINDINGS.                                                              1331
                 IV. LEGAL ANALYSIS.                                                                1332
                     A. The 90-Day Filing Period Following Receipt of the EEOC Right-to-Sue
                        Letter — Is it Jurisdictional or is it Akin to a Statute of Limitations
                        Subject to Equitable Tolling Principles?                                    1332
                        1. Introduction                                                             1332
                        2. The Early View: The 90-Day Requirement as a Jurisdictional
                           Prerequisite                                                             1332
                        3. The United States Supreme Court Decisions                                1332
                        4. The Current View: The 90-Day Requirement Subject to Equitable
                           Tolling                                                                  1334
                    B. The Presumption of Delivered Mail                                            1334
                 V. CONCLUSION.                                                                     1336
                

This employment discrimination litigation raises the question of whether Plaintiff Mary Lou Roush's claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e-2000e-17, is time-barred because she failed to comply with Title VII's requirement that plaintiffs seeking to bring civil actions under Title VII must do so within ninety (90) days after receiving a right-to-sue letter from the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f)(1). Roush's former employer and Defendant in this action, Kartridge Pak Co., has moved for partial summary judgment, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(a), asserting that 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f)(1) renders Roush's Title VII claim time-barred and, therefore, Roush's Title VII claim must be dismissed.

I. PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND.

On November 26, 1991, Roush, through her counsel, filed a petition at law in the Iowa District Court for Scott County against Kartridge Pak Co. asserting age and sex discrimination arising out of her termination of employment with Kartridge Pak Co. in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 621-634 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e-2000e-17. The litigation was removed from state court to this court by the Defendant on December 24, 1991. On October 6, 1993, Roush and Kartridge Pak Co. consented to proceed before a United States magistrate judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c).

On November 16, 1993, Kartridge Pak Co. moved for partial summary judgment asserting that Roush's failure to file this action within ninety (90) days of receipt of the EEOC right-to-sue letter requires dismissal of her Title VII claim pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f)(1). In support of its motion for partial summary judgment, as required by Local Court Rule 14(h), Kartridge Pak Co. filed Defendant's Statement of Material Facts in Support of Defendant's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment alleging certain facts upon which there is no genuine issue to be tried. Roush has not filed a timely resistance to Kartridge Pak Co.'s motion for partial summary judgment as required by Local Court Rule 14(f) which provides that "if no resistance is filed the motion may be granted." Notwithstanding this local rule, the court will address the merits of Kartridge Pak Co.'s motion for partial summary judgment.

II. SUMMARY JUDGMENT STANDARDS.

The standard for granting summary judgment is well established. Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides that summary judgment is proper only if "the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Woodsmith Publishing Co. v. Meredith Corp., 904 F.2d 1244, 1247 (8th Cir.1990); Wabun-Inini v. Sessions, 900 F.2d 1234, 1238 (8th Cir.1990) (citing Fed. R.Civ.P. 56(c)).¹ A court considering a motion for summary judgment must view all the facts in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, and give that party the benefit of all reasonable inferences that can be drawn from the facts. Matsushita v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 1356, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986) (quoting United States v. Diebold, Inc., 369 U.S. 654, 655, 82 S.Ct. 993, 993, 8 L.Ed.2d 176 (1962)); Burk v. Beene, 948 F.2d 489, 492 (8th Cir. 1991).

The Eighth Circuit recognizes "that summary judgment is a drastic remedy and must be exercised with extreme care to prevent taking genuine issues of fact away from juries." Wabun-Inini, 900 F.2d at 1238. The Eighth Circuit, however, also follows the principle that "summary judgment procedure is properly regarded not as a disfavored procedural shortcut, but rather as an integral part of the Federal Rules as a whole, which are designed `to secure the just, speedy and inexpensive determination of every action.'" Id. (quoting Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 327, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2555, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)); Hartnagel v. Norman, 953 F.2d 394, 396 (8th Cir.1992).

Procedurally, Kartridge Pak Co., as the moving party, bears "the initial responsibility of informing the district court of the basis for its motion and identifying those portions of the record which show lack of a genuine issue." Hartnagel, 953 F.2d at 395 (citing Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. at 2552). Kartridge Pak Co. is not required by Rule 56 to support its motion with affidavits or other similar materials negating the opponent's claim. Id.

"When a moving party has carried its burden under Rule 56(c), its opponent must do more than simply show there is some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts." Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 586, 106 S.Ct. at 1356. A nonmoving party (here Plaintiff Roush) is required under Rule 56(e) to go beyond the pleadings, and by affidavits, or by the "depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file," designate "specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial." Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e); Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324, 106 S.Ct. at 2553. The necessary proof that Roush must produce is not precisely measurable, but it must be "enough evidence so that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmovant." Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 257, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2514, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).

In Anderson, 477 U.S. at 249, 106 S.Ct. at 2510, Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323-24, 106 S.Ct. at 2552-53, and Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 586-87, 106 S.Ct. at 1355-56, the Supreme Court

established that a summary judgment motion should be interpreted by the trial court to accomplish its purpose of disposing of factually unsupported claims, and the trial judge's function is not to weigh the evidence and determine the truth of the matter, but to determine whether there is a genuine issue for trial. Johnson v. Enron Corp., 906 F.2d 1234, 1237 (8th Cir.1990). The trial court, therefore, must "assess the adequacy of the nonmovants' response and whether that showing, on admissible evidence, would be sufficient to carry the burden of proof at trial." Hartnagel, 953 F.2d at 396 (citing Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322, 106 S.Ct. at 2552). If the nonmoving party fails to make a sufficient showing of an essential element of a claim with respect to which it has the burden of proof, then the moving party is "entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. at 2552; Woodsmith, 904 F.2d at 1247. However, if the court can conclude that a reasonable trier of fact could return a verdict for the nonmovant, then summary judgment should not be granted. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248, 106 S.Ct. at 2510; Burk, 948 F.2d at 492; Woodsmith, 904 F.2d at 1247.

III. FACTUAL FINDINGS

On July 31, 1991, the Milwaukee district office of the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, issued a notice of right-to-sue to Mary Lou Roush, 2339 Iowa, Davenport, Iowa 52803.² The notice was not mailed by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested. The notice was mailed in the normal course of business to the parties as addressed on the face of the notice of right-to-sue. The notice of right-to-sue mailed to the parties was not returned to the EEOC by the U.S. Postal Service.

The EEOC notice of right-to-sue to Roush clearly informed her that she must file suit within ninety (90) days of receipt of the notice or "the right to sue will be lost." The right-to-sue letter also informed Roush if she could not afford or was unable to retain counsel, the district court having jurisdiction over her case may appoint counsel — but such a request "does not relieve the party of the obligation to file a lawsuit within this 90-day period."

On November 26, 1991, Roush, through counsel, originally commenced this action in the Iowa District Court for Scott County. November 26, 1991 is 118 days after the issuance of the EEOC right-to-sue letter.

There is no evidentiary basis in the summary judgment record concerning whether Roush did, in fact, receive the July 31, 1991 EEOC notice of right-to-sue mailed to her. Kartridge Pak Co....