Valles-Hall v. Center for Nonprofit Advancement

• Decision Date: 12 March 2007
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 06-806 (CKK).
• Citation: 481 F.Supp.2d 118
• Parties: Arminda VALLES-HALL, Plaintiff, v. CENTER FOR NONPROFIT ADVANCEMENT, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Columbia

481 F.Supp.2d 118

Arminda VALLES-HALL, Plaintiff, v. CENTER FOR NONPROFIT ADVANCEMENT, Defendant.

Civil Action No. 06-806 (CKK).

United States District Court, District of Columbia.

March 12, 2007.

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Dhamian A. Blue, Donald M. Temple, Temple Law Offices, Washington, DC, for Plaintiff.

Charles Henry Fleischer, Oppenheimer, Fleischer & Quiggle, P.C., Bethesda, MD, for Defendant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

KOLLAR-KOTELLY, District Judge.

Pending before the Court is Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff's Complaint and First Amended Complaint include claims pursuant to both 42 U.S.C. § 1981 and the District of Columbia Human Rights Act, D.C.Code §§ 2-1401 et seq. ("DCHRA"), alleging that Defendant, the Center for Nonprofit Advancement ("CNA"), discriminated against Plaintiff on the basis of "racial, ethnic, and national origin considerations," First Am. Compl. (hereinafter "Am. Compl.") ¶¶ 73-78; Compl. ¶¶ 31-35, and that CNA retaliated against Plaintiff because "she was engaged in statutorily protected expression concerning the vindication of her civil rights," Am. Compl. ¶¶ 68-72; Compl. ¶¶ 41-44. In addition to these claims, Plaintiffs Complaint includes claims for Sexual Orientation/Preference discrimination under the DCHRA (Count II), Constructive Discharge (Count IV), Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress (Count V), and Negligent Supervision (Count VI); however, Plaintiff has not opposed Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment as to these Counts, and the Court shall therefore dismiss them as abandoned. Defendant has moved for summary judgment as to all Counts included in Plaintiffs Complaint and First Amended Complaint. Upon a searching consideration of the filings currently before the Court, the attached exhibits, the relevant case law, and the entire record herein, the Court shall grant Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment in its entirety.

I: BACKGROUND

The Court begins its discussion of the facts by noting that this Court strictly adheres to the text of Local Civil Rule 56.1 (identical to Local Civil Rule 7(h) (formerly Rule 7.1(h))). The local rules for summary judgment "assist[] the district court to maintain docket control and to decide motions for summary judgment efficiently and effectively." Jackson v. Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, 101 F.3d 145, 150 (D.C.Cir.1996). "Requiring strict compliance with the local rule is justified both by the nature of summary judgment and by the rule's purposes.... The procedure contemplated by the rule thus isolates the facts that the parties assert are material, distinguishes disputed from undisputed facts, and identifies the pertinent parts of the record." Id. (quoting Gardels v. CIA, 637 F.2d 770, 773 (D.C.Cir.1980)). "[A] district court should not be obliged to sift through hundreds of pages of depositions, affidavits, and interrogatories in order to make [its] own analysis and determination of what may, or may not, be a genuine issue of material fact." Id. (quoting Twist v. Meese, 854 F.2d 1421, 1425 (D.C.Cir.1988)).

The Court further notes that Plaintiff has already been given an extra chance to comply with Local Civil Rule 56.1. On January 30, 2007, the Court found that Plaintiffs original "Statement of Material Facts" failed to comply with Local Civil Rules 7(h) and 56.1, and with this Court's May 4, 2006 Order, which advised Plaintiff that "[t]he Court strictly adheres to the dictates of Local Civil Rules 7(h) and 56.1 and may strike pleadings not in conformity with these rules." Valles-Hall v. Cent. for Nonprofit Advancement, Civil Action No. 06-806, Order (D.D.C. May 4, 2006) (citing Burke v. Gould, 286 F.3d 513, 519 (D.C.Cir.2002)); Valles-Hall, Order (D.D.C. Jan. 30, 2007). Advising Plaintiff that the purpose of Rule 56.1 is to "place the burden on the parties and their counsel, who are most familiar with the litigation and the record, to crystallize for the district court the material facts and relevant portions of the record," Jackson, 101 F.3d at 151, the Court struck Plaintiffs Opposition in its entirety and, in the interest of justice, gave Plaintiff another opportunity to file a Statement of Material Facts in Dispute/Not in Dispute that complied fully with Local Civil Rules 7(h) and 56.1.

Despite the Court's clear admonition regarding the requirements of Local Civil Rules 7(h) and 56.1, Plaintiffs more recent Genuine Statement of Material Facts in Dispute ("Plaintiffs Statement") still fails to comply with Local Civil Rules 7(h) and 56.1. As Defendant points out in its Supplemental Reply, the numbered paragraphs in Plaintiff's Statement bear no relationship at all to the numbered paragraphs in Defendant's Statement of Material Facts Not in Dispute (hereinafter "Defendant's Statement"). As a result, it is extremely difficult for the Court to parse from Plaintiffs Statement those specific facts that Plaintiff considers in dispute. See Gibson v. Office of the Architect of the Capitol, Civ. No. 00-2424(CKK), 2002 WL 32713321, at *1 n. 1 (D.D.C. Nov. 19, 2002), aff'd No. 05-5031, 2003 WL 21538073 (D.C.Cir. July 2, 2003). In addition, as Defendant also notes, Plaintiff fails to cite specific record support for a number of assertions included in her Statement, even though Defendant's initial Reply Memorandum highlighted this shortcoming. Def.'s Supp. Reply at 2-3. Indeed, Plaintiff repeatedly cites portions of, her deposition transcript in support of her assertions, but fails to actually provide the Court with the particular pages to which she cites. Plaintiff did not correct these omissions in her revised Opposition and Statement, and as a result, the Court is unable to determine whether she has simply incorrectly cited her deposition or whether she instead lacks factual support for her assertions. Nevertheless, as Plaintiff has already been given an opportunity to revise her Opposition and Statement, the Court has decided not to correct Plaintiffs errors for her by soliciting additional record evidence that Plaintiff has failed to provide. Finally, the Court notes that Plaintiffs failure to comply with Local Civil Rule 56.1 has significantly prejudiced Defendant, who has been required to file additional memoranda in response to Plaintiffs filings, and who has faced the unnecessarily difficult task of meaningfully responding to Plaintiffs improper filings.

Pursuant to Local Civil Rule 56.1, in resolving the present summary judgment motion, this Court "assumes that facts identified by the moving party in the statement of material facts are admitted, unless such a fact is controverted in the statement of genuine issues filed in opposition to the motion." LCvR 56.1; 7(h). In accordance with this Rule, the Court has treated as admitted all facts alleged by Defendant in its Statement and not specifically contradicted by Plaintiff in her Statement. The Court has also considered the facts adduced by Plaintiff in her Statement, to the extent that they are supported by record evidence, and cites directly to the record, where appropriate, to provide additional information not covered in either of the parties' statements.

A. The Parties

Plaintiff, Arminda Valles-Hall, identifies herself as a heterosexual Mexican-American woman, and describes her racial identity as either Latino or Hispanic. See Pl.'s Stmt. ¶ 1; Compl. ¶¶ 3, 33¹ In March 2003, Plaintiff applied for the position of Director of Education at Defendant the Center for Nonprofit Advancement ("CNA").² Def.'s Stmt. ¶ 12; Def.'s Ex. 1 (1/4/06 Valles-Hall Dep.) at 51:8-20. Plaintiff was interviewed by CNA's Executive Director, Betsy Johnson, who was solely responsible for the decision to offer Plaintiff the position with a starting salary of $52,000 per year. Def.'s Stmt. ¶¶ 5, 13; Def.'s Ex. 1 (1/4/06 Valles-Hall Dep.) at 51:8-52:15; Def.'s Ex. 2 (4/2/03 Offer Letter from Johnson to Valles-Hall). Plaintiff accepted Ms. Johnson's offer and began working at CNA on April 21, 2003. Def.'s Stmt. ¶ 14; Def.'s Ex. 1 (1/4/06 Valles-Hall Dep.) at 41:7-10.³ Plaintiff was an at-will employee of CNA from April 21, 2003 to February 14, 2005. Def.'s Stmt. ¶ 14; Def.'s Ex. 1 (1/4/06 Valles-Hall Dep.) at 41:11-16.

CNA is a tax-exempt, District of Columbia nonprofit corporation headquartered in the District of Columbia. Def.'s Stmt. ¶ 1; Def.'s Ex. 23 (1/12/06 Johnson Dep.) at 11:6-11. CNA was founded in 1979 and serves the nonprofit community in the Washington, DC metropolitan area through education, advocacy, nonprofit community building and group purchasing. Def.'s Stmt. ¶ 2; Def.'s Ex. 23 (1/12/06 Johnson Dep.) at 11:11-12:9. CNA is governed by a Board of Directors, which is chaired by its President. At all times relevant to this matter, Mary Ann de Barbieri served as President of CNA. Def.'s Stmt. ¶ 4; Def.'s Ex. 23 (1/12/06 Johnson Dep.) at 20:109-22:11. CNA's paid staff is headed by Ms. Johnson, who has served as CNA's Executive Director since 1988. Def.'s Stmt. ¶ 5; Def.'s Ex. 23 (1/12/06 Johnson Dep.) at 12:12-14:1. CNA has a Personnel Handbook, which each employee is required to read, and acknowledge having read, upon being hired. Def.'s Stmt. ¶¶ 6, 8; Def.'s EL 1 (1/4/06 Valles-Hall Dep.) at 55:8-14; Def.'s Ex. 4 (WCA Personnel Handbook); Def.'s Ex. 5 (4/28/03 Valles-Hall Handbook Acknowledgment Form); Def.'s Ex. 23 (1/12/06 Johnson Dep.) at 77:16-78:16. In addition to containing provisions relating to equal employment and non-discrimination, use of compensatory time, sick leave, workplace behavior, and discipline, the Personnel Handbook notes that specific types of misconduct may lead to corrective action or dismissal. Def.'s Stmt. ¶¶ 6-7; Def.'s Ex. 4 (WCA Personnel Handbook). These include "[c]onduct, including speech ... that is abusive to or disrespectful of [CNA]'s directors [or] employees ...;" "[f]ailure to conduct yourself in a professional and cooperative manner while carrying...