Woolley v. Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc.
Citation | 499 A.2d 515,101 N.J. 10 |
Decision Date | 25 October 1985 |
Docket Number | HOFFMANN-LA |
Parties | , 4 IER Cases 403 Richard M. WOOLLEY, Plaintiff-Appellant, v.ROCHE, INC., Defendant-Respondent. |
Court | United States State Supreme Court (New Jersey) |
The defendant, Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc., has filed a motion for clarification of our opinion in Woolley v. Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc., 99 N.J. 284, 491 A.2d 1257 (1985). The motion notes that the Court ruled that on remand there would be no trial of the "good cause" issue because that would be unfair, given the "fact" that defendant Hoffmann-La Roche had not complied with the termination procedures required by contract. Id. at 307-08, 491 A.2d 1257. The opinion notes that "on the record before us the employer's failure [to have complied] is undeniable."
The motion for clarification points out that the impression that Hoffmann-La Roche had conceded that it had failed to conform to the contractual termination provisions resulted from the procedural status of the case:
Hoffmann-La Roche had moved for summary judgment on the ground that plaintiff Woolley was an employee-at-will, and that even if the employer had not complied with the termination provisions and even if it did not have good cause, nevertheless it had the unrestricted right to fire the employee-at-will. The motion contends that the concessions were made solely for the purpose of the summary judgment argument (and any appeal resulting from a decision on that argument) with the clear understanding that there were no concessions on the merits. Rather, Hoffmann-La Roche claimed that it had in fact complied with the termination provisions and that it had good cause to fire Woolley.
Our examination of the motion for clarification along with the papers submitted by both parties convinces us beyond any doubt that defendant Hoffmann-La Roche is correct: it never conceded the issues mentioned above, but reserved them for plenary trial.
IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that the motion is granted and our judgment is hereby modified to provide that on remand defendant Hoffmann-La Roche will not be foreclosed from attempting to prove that it had complied with the contractual termination provisions and, assuming it succeeds on that issue (and only if it succeeds on that issue), that it had good cause to terminate plaintiff Woolley. If defendant Hoffmann-La Roche does not prevail in its position that it complied with the contractual termination provisions, the "good cause" issue shall not be...
To continue reading
Request your trial-
Young v. Schering Corp.
...... See Erickson v. Marsh & [660 A.2d 1157] McLennan Co., Inc., 117 N.J. 539, 562-66, 569 A.2d 793 (1990). He argues that the ... severance pay claim is a contractual cause of action recognized in Woolley v. Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc., 99 N.J. 284, 491 A.2d 1257, modified, 101 N.J. ......
-
Certified Question, In re, WJBK-TV2
......570, 44 N.W.2d 184 (1950); Universal Leaseway System, Inc. v. Herrud & Co., 366 Mich. 473, 115 N.W.2d 294 (1962). . ... a manual, although the list does not purport to be exhaustive." Woolley v. Hoffmann-LaRoche, Inc., 99 N.J. 284, 301, n. 8, 491 A.2d 1257, 1266 ......
-
Falco v. Community Medical Center
......at 238, 645 A.2d 1238 (citing Casper v. Paine Webber Group, Inc., 787 F.Supp. 1480, 1509 (D.N.J.1992), and Catalane v. Gilian Instrument ...401, 412, 643 A.2d 554 (1994)(citing Woolley v. Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc., 99 N.J. 284, 309, 491 A.2d 1257, modified, 101 ......
-
Fregara v. Jet Aviation Business Jets, Civ. A. No. 89-3788.
...... in the first through fourth counts that Jet Aviation Business Jets, Inc. ("Jet") and its agents Richard Kunert and Edward Baillif ("plaintiff's ... See Woolley v. Hoffman La Roche, Inc., 99 N.J. 284, 293, 301 n. 8, 491 A.2d 1257 ......
-
A Woolley Situation: District of New Jersey Refuses to Enforce Arbitration Clause in Employee Handbook
...agreement, please contact your Proskauer lawyer. [1] "Woolley" refers to Woolley v. Hoffman-La Roche, Inc., 99 N.J. 284, modified, 101 N.J. 10 (1985) which stands for the general proposition that employee handbooks may create an enforceable employment contract without a sufficient [2] Inter......
-
Social isolation and American workers: employee blogging and legal reform.
...includes cases based on written or oral communications. See, e.g., Woolley v. Hoffman-La Roche, Inc., 491 A.2d 1257, 1258, modified, 499 A.2d 515 (N.J. 1985) ("We hold that absent a clear and prominent disclaimer, an implied promise contained in an employment manual that an employee will be......