Rush v. McDonald's Corp.
| Decision Date | 12 April 1991 |
| Docket Number | No. IP 89-914-C.,IP 89-914-C. |
| Parties | Patricia D. RUSH, Plaintiff, v. McDONALD'S CORPORATION, Sharon Funston, and William Rose, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of Indiana |
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Carolyn C. Coukos, Indianapolis, Ind., for plaintiff.
Mark W. Ford, David J. Carr, Johnson Smith Densborn Wright & Heath, Indianapolis, Ind., for defendants.
ENTRY AND ORDER
The plaintiff in this action, Patricia D. Rush, was employed by defendant McDonald's Corporation as a word processor technician from November 11, 1985, until her discharge on May 6, 1988.1 Defendant Sharon Funston-Renihan was Rush's supervisor from January, 1988, until Rush's discharge. Defendant William Rose was a McDonald's regional manager and supervised the McDonald's office at which Rush worked.
Rush, a black woman, claims in her first amended complaint that she suffered various race-related discriminatory practices at the defendants' hands in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq. ("Title VII"). Specifically, Rush alleges that because of her race: (1) she was discharged; (2) she was intentionally and maliciously denied a promotion from a part-time position to a full-time position; (3) she was intentionally denied employment benefits; and (4) she was harassed and treated differently than white employees. Rush also asserts that McDonald's had a de facto policy of filling the word processor position with minorities and hiring minorities on a part-time basis more frequently than non-minorities.
In addition to these Title VII claims against McDonald's and Funston-Renihan, Rush claims defendants McDonald's and Rose violated § 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1870, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, by intentionally denying her a promotion from a part-time position to a full-time position because of her race. Rush also brings a cause of action under the Employee Retirement Income and Security Act of 1974, as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq. ("ERISA"), for wrongful denial of employee benefits.2
Numerous motions now pend in this cause. The defendants initially moved to dismiss the plaintiff's complaint in part, then subsequently filed a motion for summary judgment as to the entire action. In addition to these dispositive motions, the defendants filed separate motions for sanctions under Rules 11 and 16(f). Meanwhile, the plaintiff has sought leave to file a second amended complaint.3
Rush seeks leave to amend Count 3 of her complaint,4 involving her ERISA claim. In support of her position, Rush states:
In the course of discovery Rush developed additional evidence that bears on her ERISA claim, which was the reason she felt her ERISA claim should be clarified.... Evidence developed during discovery establishes that Rush's ERISA claim is best brought as a Section 510 claim (29 U.S.C. Sec. 1140). A section 510 claim is enforceable under ERISA Section 502 (29 U.S.C. Sec. 1132). Prior to discovery, the evidence available to Rush indicated that her claim should be brought under Section 502 itself.
(Plf.'s Brief in Supp. at 3).
The distinction between these ERISA provisions is easily discernable. Section 502 provides a civil remedy to recover benefits under an ERISA plan, whereas Section 510 (enforceable through Section 502) provides a statutory remedy against any person who interferes with rights under a plan. In support for her motion, Rush notes that Rule 15(a) provides that leave to amend should be "freely given when justice so requires."
The defendants strongly oppose Rush's attempts to file a second amended complaint. To fully comprehend the defendants' objection, a brief procedural review is required. The original complaint was filed August 18, 1989. On October 10, 1989, the defendants filed a motion for more definite statement, a portion of which was directed at Rush's ERISA claim. The Court granted this motion on December 4, 1989, and the plaintiff filed her amended complaint December 21, 1989. As to Rush's ERISA claim, the amended complaint did nothing more than reiterate the identical, scant paragraph the Court previously found deficient.
On June 5, 1990, the defendants filed a motion to dismiss specific portions of the plaintiff's complaint. This motion was in part directed at Rush's ERISA claim, and asserted that dismissal was required because Rush failed to exhaust her administrative remedies, because the action was brought against at least one improper defendant (Rose), and because Rush failed to allege she was a "participant" in McDonald's plan.
Subsequently, on July 25, 1990, Rush filed a motion for leave to amend and a proposed second amended complaint. This motion was filed about six weeks beyond the cut-off date for filing such motions set by the pretrial scheduling Order in this cause. After the defendants noted this fact in their opposing brief, Rush filed a motion to enlarge time to file a motion for leave to amend the complaint.
The brief supporting the plaintiff's motion states in notable part that Rush "regrettably neglected" to file a timely motion to enlarge time. The brief further states, (Brief in Supp. at 1) (emphasis added). The Court understands the difficulties facing a solo practitioner. However, a busy practice is no excuse for failing to file the proper motions on a client's behalf. Rule 1.3 of the Rules of Professional Conduct and the accompanying comment require lawyers to control their workload so that each client is adequately served.
The focus of inquiry, however, is not whether plaintiff's counsel has a busy schedule, but whether Rush should be permitted to file a third (second amended) complaint. On the basis of this procedural background, the defendants argue that allowing the second amended complaint to be filed would clearly prejudice them.
The defendants' argument is not without merit. Permitting Rush to file an amended complaint after a motion to dismiss an earlier complaint has been filed may result in prejudice. At a minimum the timing of the request to amend is unfortunate. This fact is magnified in recognition of the fact that the request to amend was made well beyond the cut-off date for doing so as clearly set forth in this Court's pretrial Order.
Nevertheless, the Court must not lose sight of the fact that Rule 15(a) provides in no uncertain terms that leave to amend shall be freely given when justice so requires, and courts have consistently enforced the plain language of the Rule. See, e.g., Fort Howard Paper Co. v. Standard Havens, Inc., 901 F.2d 1373, 1379 (7th Cir.1990) (collecting cases). At the same time, however, Rule 15(a) "is not a license for carelessness or gamesmanship," for parties have an "interest in speedy resolution of their disputes without undue expense." Id. (quoting Feldman v. Allegheny Intern., Inc., 850 F.2d 1217, 1225 (7th Cir.1988)).
This is a close case, and the defendants' argument in opposition to granting leave to amend is persuasive. However, the Court finds that Rush's ERISA claim is more properly brought, if at all, pursuant to Section 510, and this fact weighs in favor of granting leave to amend. Moreover, the exhaustion argument defendants raise in support of their motion to dismiss the ERISA claim is subject to consideration based on the briefs now before the Court. Thus, allowing the amended complaint to be filed would not require additional briefing. Accordingly, Rush's motion to enlarge time is granted, as is Rush's motion for leave to amend, and the complaint is deemed filed.5
Having found that the plaintiff should be permitted to file a second amended complaint, the question now is whether the complaint can withstand a Rule 12(b)(6) attack. In ruling on a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim, this Court must accept the plaintiff's well-pleaded allegations as true, and must view these allegations in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. Gomez v. Illinois State Board of Education, 811 F.2d 1030, 1039 (7th Cir.1987).
As previously set forth, Rush claims the following Title VII violations: (1) she was discharged because of her race; (2) she was intentionally and maliciously denied a promotion from a part-time position to a full-time position because of her race; (3) she was intentionally denied employment benefits because of her race; (4) she was harassed and treated differently than white employees; and (5) McDonald's had a de facto policy of filling the word processor position with minorities and hiring minorities on a part-time basis more frequently than non-minorities.
The defendants first argue that to the extent Rush's Title VII claims exceed the scope of her employment discrimination charge filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC"), the claims must be dismissed. Accordingly, the defendants argue that the only Title VII claim that Rush has properly exhausted is her claim that she was discharged because of her race.
In support of this argument, the defendants cite to Sanchez v. Standard Brands, Inc., 431 F.2d 455 (5th Cir.1970), and related cases for the proposition that allegations in a plaintiff's complaint that fall beyond the reach of the plaintiff's prior EEOC charge of discrimination must be excluded by the Court. In Sanchez, the court concluded that the proper focus is on the scope of the EEOC investigation, rather than the precise words contained in the charge. Id. at 466.
In making this conclusion, the court explained:
The purpose of a charge of discrimination is to trigger the investigatory and conciliatory procedures of the EEOC. Once a charge has been filed, the Commission carries out its investigatory function and attempts to obtain voluntary compliance with the law. Only if...
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