Scovill v. Wsyx/Abc, Sinclair Broadcast Group
| Decision Date | 29 March 2004 |
| Docket Number | No. 2:02-CV-679.,2:02-CV-679. |
| Parties | Peter B. SCOVILL, Plaintiff, v. WSYX/ABC, SINCLAIR BROADCAST GROUP, INC., et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of Ohio |
Frederick Martin Gittes, Gittes & Schulte — 2, Kathaleen Beth Schulte, Gittes & Schulte — 2, Columbus, OH, for Plaintiff.
Priscilla L. Hapner, Thomas V. Williams, Frost, Brown, Todd LLC, Columbus, OH, for Defendants.
This matter is before the Court for consideration of Defendants' Motion to Dismiss or, in the alternative, to Stay litigation pending arbitration. (Doc. # 38). For the reasons that follow, the motion is granted.
Plaintiff, Peter B. Scovill, ["Plaintiff"] filed this action in the Court of Common Pleas for Franklin County, Ohio claiming that he was discriminated against by his employer, Defendant WSYX / ABC Television, on account of his age, in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act ["ADEA"], 29 U.S.C. § 621, et seq., and Ohio law, R.C. § 4112.02. Plaintiff also brings claims for unlawful retaliation under R.C. § 4112.02, invasion of privacy, promissory estoppel, and violation of Ohio public policy. The Defendants are: the Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., Sinclair Communications, Inc., Sinclair Media II, Inc., WTTE/WSYX-TV, Columbus (WTTE-TV), Inc., WTTE, Channel 28, Inc., and David Silverstein ("Defendants"). The Defendants removed the case to this Court under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1441 and 1446(b). The Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of this action pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331 based upon the ADEA claim. The Court has supplemental jurisdiction over Plaintiff's state law claims pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1367.
Plaintiff was hired and employed by Defendant Sinclair Media II, Inc. [hereinafter "Sinclair"] as an anchor/reporter for WSYX/WTTE-TV (Fox TV or Fox 28) from September 11, 1998 until May 17, 2002. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 2 and 12). Sinclair sent an initial two-page letter dated July 31, 1998 to confirm the parties' agreement of a three-year written contract that established regular pay raises and bonuses. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 12; Defendants' Reply Memorandum in Support of Motion to Dismiss at 2). At the time of the Defendants' offer, Plaintiff was employed as an anchor with WFTX-TV in Cape Coral, Florida, where he had worked for eleven years. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 13). Throughout his discussions regarding employment with the Defendants, according to the Amended Complaint, Plaintiff was repeatedly told that his contract would be renewed at the end of the three-year period if his program ratings had grown and bonuses under the agreement were paid. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 14). Plaintiff signed his initial employment letter on August 3, 1998 and began working on September 11, 1998. (Defendants' Reply Memorandum in Support of Motion to Dismiss at 3).
Sometime thereafter, Plaintiff signed an Employment Agreement ("the Agreement") dated September 30, 1998, which provides in relevant part1:
15. ARBITRATION. Except as specifically provided in Section 12,1 Employee and Employer agree to submit any dispute or controversy arising out of or relating to this Agreement, including, but not limited to, claims of termination allegedly resulting from discrimination on the basis of race, sex, age, national origin, ancestry, color, religion, marital status, status as a veteran of the Vietnam era, physical or mental disability, medical condition, claims based on common law, contract, or statutorily created or protected rights or any other basis prohibited by law, exclusively to final and binding arbitration before a neutral arbitrator.
If Employee and Employer are unable to agree upon a neutral arbitrator, Employer will obtain a list of arbitrators from a state or federal arbitration service. Employee (first) then Employer will alternately strike names from the list until only one name remains; the remaining person shall be the arbitrator. The arbitrator shall be bound by the qualifications and disclosure provisions and the procedures set forth in the 1989 Model Employment Arbitration Procedures of the American Arbitration Association and shall order such discovery as is appropriate to the nature of the claim and necessary to the adjudication thereof.
Arbitration proceedings shall be held in the city or town where Employee's employment services were performed.... The arbitrator shall determine the prevailing party in the arbitration and the costs of the arbitration shall be paid by the non-prevailing party.
Employee and Employer agree that this arbitration shall be the exclusive means of resolving any dispute or controversy arising out of or relating to this Agreement, Employee's employment with Employer, or termination of Employee's employment, and that no other action will be brought by Employee in any court or other forum, including but not limited to, claims based on common law, contract or statutorily created or protected rights. THIS AGREEMENT IS A WAIVER OF ALL RIGHTS TO A CIVIL COURT ACTION FOR A DISPUTED TERMINATION; ONLY THE ARBITRATOR, NOT A JUDGE OR JURY, WILL DECIDE SUCH A DISPUTE.
Employee and Employer agree that if any court of competent jurisdiction declares that any pat of this arbitration provision is illegal, invalid or unenforceable, such a declaration will not affect the legality, validity or enforceability of the remaining parts of the arbitration provision and the illegal, invalid or unenforceable part will no longer be part of this arbitration provision.
(Exhibit A attached to Defendants' Motion to Dismiss or Stay).
During the time that Plaintiff co-anchored the Fox TV 10:00 p.m. news program, Plaintiff contends that the program's ratings rose consistently. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 17). Besides providing services to Defendants as an anchor, Mr. Scovill also functioned as an investigative reporter and, at the station's request, engaged in numerous community services and public affairs activities. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 18). At Defendants' encouragement and request, Plaintiff appeared on and worked with numerous radio stations in the central Ohio area. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 20).
According to Plaintiff, during his employment with Sinclair, Defendants' manager told Plaintiff that his contract would be renewed based on his performance and the show's ratings, and that he could expect a substantial increase in salary at the time of his contract renewal. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 21). Relying on the manager's promise, Plaintiff refrained from looking for other employment and declined to pursue other employment opportunities. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 22). In the spring of 2001, Plaintiff applied for the position of News Director for WSYX/WTTE-TV. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 23). In July of 2001, Defendant David Silverstein was hired for the news director position instead. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 24). Plaintiff alleges that age was a determining factor in the decision to hire Silverstein rather than Plaintiff for the news director position. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 25)
On or about August 22, 2001, Silverstein informed Plaintiff that his contract would not be renewed. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 27a). Plaintiff alleges that Silverstein instructed the older anchors to refrain from mentioning their names on the air and discontinued promotions featuring the older anchors. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 27c). On or about January 7, 2002, Silverstein demoted Mr. Scovill from his position as Fox News Anchor. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 27d). In addition, Silverstein allegedly told Plaintiff that he had decided to promote the younger "more energetic" reporters to key anchor positions because they would relate better to the station's target audience. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 27d). On or about February 6, 2002, Silverstein gave Plaintiff a written reprimand. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 27e). Following the reprimand, Plaintiff alleges that he suffered a physical and emotional reaction due to continued tensions at his work environment. (Plaintiff's Memorandum Contra Defendants' Motion to Dismiss at 11).
In February 2002, Plaintiff took a medical leave of absence (Am. Complaint at ¶ 32). Following Plaintiff's request for leave, the Defendants allegedly instructed other station employees to engage in surveillance and monitoring of Plaintiff's personal activities away from work. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 32). In February 2002, the Defendants allegedly informed Mr. Scovill's co-workers that he was not to be allowed on the station's premises and that if he appeared on the premises they were to call the police. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 27g).
Plaintiff alleges that he was falsely accused by the Defendants of violating obligations to the station and was notified that he would be disciplined upon his return to work following his medical leave of absence. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 34). On February 25, 2002, Plaintiff complained to the corporate Defendants of various allegedly unlawful discriminatory conduct and harassment to which he had been subjected. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 35). Eighty-one days after Mr. Scovill reported that he had been subjected to discrimination and harassment, the Defendants notified him that his employment was terminated. (Am. Complaint at ¶ 36).
Plaintiff brings this action for age discrimination, invasion of privacy, promissory estoppel, and violation of public policy. Defendants have filed a Motion to Dismiss the above-mentioned claims or, in the alternative, to stay this action pending arbitration.
Although Defendants have filed a Motion to Dismiss or Stay Pending Arbitration pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) alleging a lack of subject matter jurisdiction, Defendants' motion does not come within the ambit of Rule 12(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Raasch v. NCR Corp., 254 F.Supp.2d 847, 851 (S.D.Ohio 2003). Instead, this case is governed by the Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA"), 9 U.S.C. § 1 (1947), which provides that "a party aggrieved by the...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Scovill v. Wsyx/Abc
...unenforceable: (1) a cost-shifting provision, (2) a remedies provision, and (3) an evidentiary provision. Scovill v. WSYX/ABC, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., 312 F.Supp.2d 955 (2004). The court then severed these provisions, enforced the remainder of the arbitration agreement, and granted ......