Shovlin v. University of Medicine and Dentistry

• Citation: 50 F.Supp.2d 297
• Decision Date: 03 April 1998
• Docket Number: No. CIV. 97-634(DRD).,CIV. 97-634(DRD).
• Parties: Francis Edward SHOVLIN, D.D.S., M.S., Plaintiff, v. UNIVERSITY OF MEDICINE AND DENTISTRY OF NEW JERSEY, (UMDNJ), a body corporate and politic of the State of New Jersey, Stanley Bergen, in his individual capacity and as President of UMDNJ, Paul Larson, in his individual capacity and as Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, Karen Putterman, in her individual capacity and as Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. Richard Buchanan, in his individual capacity and as Dean of the New Jersey Dental School, Frank A. Catalanotto, in his individual capacity and as Associate Dean of Research for NJDS, Julie Kligerman, in her individual capacity and as Staff Attorney, UMDNJ, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of New Jersey

Page 297

50 F.Supp.2d 297

Francis Edward SHOVLIN, D.D.S., M.S., Plaintiff, v. UNIVERSITY OF MEDICINE AND DENTISTRY OF NEW JERSEY, (UMDNJ), a body corporate and politic of the State of New Jersey, Stanley Bergen, in his individual capacity and as President of UMDNJ, Paul Larson, in his individual capacity and as Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, Karen Putterman, in her individual capacity and as Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. Richard Buchanan, in his individual capacity and as Dean of the New Jersey Dental School, Frank A. Catalanotto, in his individual capacity and as Associate Dean of Research for NJDS, Julie Kligerman, in her individual capacity and as Staff Attorney, UMDNJ, Defendants.

No. CIV. 97-634(DRD).

United States District Court, D. New Jersey.

April 3, 1998.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Catherine Shovlin, Tucson, AZ, Thomas W. Randall, Randall, Randall & Stevens, Westwood, NJ, for Plaintiff.

Peter Verniero, Attorney General of New Jersey by Michael J. Gonnella, Deputy Attorney General, Jeffrey C. Burnstein, Deputy Attorney General, Beatriz Valera-Schutz, Deputy Attorney General, R.J Hughes Justice Complex, Trenton, NJ, for Defendants University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Stanley Bergen, Karen Putterman, Richard Buchanan, Frank A. Catalanotto and Julie Kligerman.

Carl Greenberg, Budd, Larner, Gross, Rosenbaum, Greenberg & Sade, Short Hills, NJ, for Defendant Paul Larson.

OPINION

DEBEVOISE, Senior District Judge.

Plaintiff Francis Edward Shovlin, D.D.S., M.S. ("plaintiff"), brought this action alleging, inter alia, that defendants violated his rights guaranteed under the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff also alleges defendants conspired to violate his constitutional rights.

Now before the Court are defendants' motion for summary judgment and plaintiff's motion for partial summary judgment. For the reasons that follow, plaintiff's motion will be denied, defendants' motion will be granted and this action will be dismissed in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff was a tenured professor at the New Jersey Dental School ("NJDS") of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey ("UMDNJ"). Plaintiff retired from this position in July 1994, following almost 33 years of employment with NJDS.¹ In May 1995, he was denied appointment as Professor Emeritus. In June 1995, plaintiff was notified that his appointment as an adjunct professor was not going to be renewed. Additionally, in February 1995 his request for laboratory space was denied and in May 1996 his offer to volunteer in the Research Center was rejected. Plaintiff alleges that the foregoing actions were in retaliation for his criticisms of the NJDS administration.

Plaintiff spoke-out against the administration of NJDS on numerous occasions between 1992 and 1995. Specifically, he voiced his opinion on issues pertaining to the Dental Research Center ("DRC") and the Special Services Clinic ("SSC") at NJDS, and in the course of scientific misconduct proceedings initiated at UMDNJ. He maintains these issues were of public concern.

In November 1985, plaintiff in conjunction with Dr. Leroy Parker, the former Dean of NJDS, established the DRC at NJDS. The DRC was started in order to attract federal and state research grants and enhance the dental school's reputation for research. After a national search, Dr. Bronislaw Slomiany ("B.Slomiany") was selected to head the DRC. B. Slomiany came to the DRC as a part of a joint research team with his wife, Dr. Amalia Slomiany ("A.Slomiany").

At the time of B. Slomiany's hiring there was the execution of a March 3, 1988 "Memorandum of Understanding." The Memorandum of Understanding set forth details concerning B. Slomiany's employment arrangement with NJDS. It provided, in relevant part:

Faculty appointment as professor at UMDNJ/NJDS is effective December 15, 1987, and will continue until retirement, dismissal for cause or financial exigency as set forth in the UMDNJ Bylaws. The administrative appointment of Faculty as Director of Research is effective May 1, 1988. Such appointment shall be at the pleasure of the Dean of UMDNJ/NJDS and the UMDNJ Board of Trustees. Faculty will be responsible directly to the NJDS Dean in his capacity as the Director of Research.

(Defendants' Aff., IA at 27). The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Dr. Dominick P. DePaola ("DePaola"), who had replaced Parker as Dean of NJDS, and was accepted by B. Slomiany on March 5, 1988.

In 1989 and 1990, there were various changes in the NJDS administration. Defendant Dr. Frank Catalanotto ("Catalanotto") came with DePaola to the dental school. He was appointed Associate Dean of Academic Planning and Faculty Development. Defendant Dr. Richard Buchanan ("Buchanan") was appointed Executive Associate Dean under DePaola. Following DePaola's departure, Buchanan was appointed Dean of NJDS.² At about that time, defendant Dr. Paul Larson ("Larson") became Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs at UMDNJ.³ Catalanotto was appointed Associate Dean for Research under Buchanan. Plaintiff became Director of Environmental Safety.⁴

Plaintiff maintains that in 1992 Buchanan, Catalanotto and Larson commenced efforts to gain control over the DRC. Specifically, plaintiff notes that he expressed his concern over a new policy which permitted consultants and administrative liaisons appointed by the Dean to vote on items before the Research Committee. He believed that this policy gave the administration power over the Research Committee, while the NJDS Bylaws provided for faculty input on research matters. Plaintiff sought and obtained an opinion from the Bylaws and Election Committee concerning the propriety of this practice. The Bylaws and Election Committee determined that only those individuals appointed to the Research Committee by the Committee on Committees of the Academic Assembly could vote. Therefore, the members appointed solely by the Dean could not vote on issues before the Research Committee. (See Plaintiff's Ex. 25, Shovlin Aff. at ¶ 23).

In March 1993, Catalanotto submitted a proposal entitled "Proposed Guidelines for the Implementation, Management and Assessment of Specialized Centers at NJDS" to the Research Committee for comment. The proposal caused plaintiff concern because while it called for an evaluation of "Centers", plaintiff believed it was solely directed at B. Slomiany and the DRC. Plaintiff thought that the proposal conflicted with the Memorandum of Understanding between B. Slomiany and UMDNJ which provided for the administrative and fiscal management of the DRC. (Id. at ¶¶ 25-27). He raised his concerns regarding the proposal in a critique which he sent to Dean Buchanan. Plaintiff also sent copies to Catalanotto and to the members of the Research Committee, the DRC and the Committee on Committees. (Id. at ¶ 28). He asserted that the proposed guidelines removed fiscal and organizational control from the DRC's Director, while allowing those who were less qualified to guide and direct the center. Plaintiff expressed his opinion that the proposal was not in the best interests of NJDS. (Id. at ¶¶ 29-31).

The Research Committee tabled the proposal. Thereafter, Catalanotto distributed a second draft of the proposal among the members of the Research Committee. Plaintiff sent a memo to Catalanotto stating that the circulation of the second draft of the proposal "may have been inappropriate" since the Research Committee had raised a legitimate concern in tabling the proposal until additional information could be compiled to assess the different centers within the dental school. (Plaintiff's Ex. 3 at 2). In the end, the Research Committee never considered the proposal.

Also in April 1993, plaintiff corresponded with Dean Buchanan expressing concerns with regard to an ad hoc committee that Buchanan had formed to evaluate Dr. Talib Najjar's ("Najjar") performance as Director of the SSC.⁵ In an April 5, 1995 letter to Buchanan, plaintiff expressed his concern over the immediacy and timing of the review of the budgetary, research and clinical aspects of the SSC. Plaintiff also expressed an interest in appointment to the reviewing committee and gave his endorsement of Najjar. (See Plaintiff's Ex. 4).

Plaintiff's next conflict with the administration occurred in September 1993 when Dean Buchanan removed B. Slomiany from his position as Director of the DRC. B. Slomiany refused to relinquish his position without the approval of the Board of Trustees. On September 14, 1993, plaintiff wrote to defendant Dr. Stanley S. Bergen ("Bergen"), President of UMDNJ, and denounced the action taken by Dean Buchanan. Thereafter, President Bergen met with Buchanan and B. Slomiany to discuss the matter. President Bergen wrote to plaintiff advising him that nothing at the meeting indicated that the President's office should become directly involved in the matter. The Board of Trustees subsequently approved B. Slomiany's dismissal on October 14, 1993. He retained his status as a tenured professor at the school.

In or about October 1993, Buchanan and Catalanotto received information from an anonymous source concerning duplicate publication in various journals on the part of the Slomiany research group. Catalanotto referred the matter to Dr. Jeffrey Wilusz ("Wilusz"), head of the Newark Campus Committee. This committee is responsible for investigating allegations concerning violations of UMDNJ's scientific misconduct policy.⁶ Plaintiff was not implicated in the anonymous charge. He, however, was a co-author of some of the articles which were ultimately called into question.

In November 1993, Wilusz convened the Newark Campus Committee (hereinafter "the Inquiry Committee") to determine if further investigation was warranted. The Inquiry Committee found that several of the articles in question may have been duplicative. As plainti...