Edwards v. United States, Department of Energy

371 F. Supp. 2d 859, 2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13939, 2005 WL 1274388
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Kentucky
DecidedMay 16, 2005
Docket5:04CV-138-M
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 371 F. Supp. 2d 859 (Edwards v. United States, Department of Energy) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Edwards v. United States, Department of Energy, 371 F. Supp. 2d 859, 2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13939, 2005 WL 1274388 (W.D. Ky. 2005).

Opinion

AMENDED MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

MCKINLEY, District Judge.

This matter is before the Court on motions by Defendants, Lockheed Martin Energy Systems, Inc. [DN 14], the United States Department of Energy [DN 15], and the United States Enrichment Corporation [DN 36], Both the United States Department of Energy and Lockheed Martin Energy Systems move the Court to either dismiss the Complaint of Plaintiffs, Art K. Edwards, et. al, or, in the alternative, to grant summary judgment. The United States Enrichment Corporation moves the Court to grant a judgment on the pleadings, or, in the alternative, to grant summary judgment. Fully briefed, these matters stand ripe for decision. For the following reasons, Defendants’ motions are all GRANTED.

I. STANDARD OF REVIEW

Upon a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6), the Court must construe the complaint in a light most favorable to the plaintiff, accept all the factual allegations as true, and determine whether the plaintiff, undoubtedly can prove no set of facts in support of its claim that would entitle it to relief. Sistrunk, v. City of Strongsville, 99 F.3d 194, 197 (6th Cir.1996), cert. denied, 520 U.S. 1251, 117 S.Ct. 2409, 138 L.Ed.2d 175 (1997). A judge may not grant a Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) motion based on a disbelief of a complaint’s factual allegations. Wright v. MetroHealth Medical Center, 58 F.3d 1130, 1138 (6th Cir.1995), cert. denied, 516 U.S. 1158, 116 S.Ct. 1041, 134 L.Ed.2d 188 (1996). A Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) motion tests whether the plaintiff has stated a claim for which the law provides relief. Gazette v. City of Pontiac, 41 F.3d 1061, 1064 (6th Cir.1994).

The standard of review requires that a plaintiff plead more than bare legal conclusions. Lillard v. Shelby County Bd. of Educ., 76 F.3d 716, 726 (6th Cir.1996). The complaint must give the defendant fair notice of what the plaintiffs claim is and the grounds upon which it rests. Ga *862 zette, 41 F.3d at 1064. “In practice, a ... complaint must contain either direct or inferential allegations respecting all the material elements to sustain a recovery under some viable legal theory.” Lillard, 76 F.3d at 726 (citation omitted). In deciding a motion to dismiss, the Court may consider all papers and exhibits appended to the complaint, as well as any matters of which judicial notice may be taken. Hirsch v. Arthur Andersen & Co., 72 F.3d 1085, 1092 (2d Cir.1995).

The Court reviews a motion for judgment on the pleadings pursuant to Rule 12(c) under “the same de novo standard applicable to a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6).” Ziegler v. IBP Hog Market, Inc., 249 F.3d 509, 511-12 (6th Cir.2001), “In reviewing the motion, the Court must construe the complaint in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, accept all of the complaint’s factual allegations as true, and determine whether the plaintiff undoubtedly can prove no set 'of facts in support of his claim that would entitle him to relief.” Id. at 512. However, the Court “need not accept as true legal conclusions or unwarranted factual inferences.” Mixon v. Ohio, 193 F.3d 389, 400 (6th Cir.1999). Judgment in the defendant’s favor is warranted if plaintiffs cannot prove any set of facts in support of their claims that would entitle them to relief. Id.

In order to grant a motion for summary judgment, the Court must find that the pleadings, together with the depositions, interrogatories, and affidavits, establish that there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed. R.Civ.P. 56. The moving party bears the initial burden of specifying the basis for its motion and of identifying that portion of the record which demonstrates the absence of a genuine issue of material fact. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Once the moving party satisfies this burden, the non-moving party thereafter must produce specific facts demonstrating a genuine issue of fact for trial. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247-48, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).

Although the Court must review the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, the non-moving party is required to do more than simply show there is some “metaphysical doubt as to the material facts.” Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Co., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). The Rule requires the non-moving party to present “specific facts showing there is a genuine issue for trial.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e) (emphasis added). “The mere existence of a scintilla of evidence in support of the [non-moving party’s] position will be insufficient; there must be evidence on which the jury could reasonably find for the [non-moving party].” Anderson, 477 U.S. at 252, 106 S.Ct. 2505. It is against these standards that the Court reviews the following facts.

II. BACKGROUND

The Plaintiffs, a class of retirees from the Paducah Gas Diffusion Plant (PGDP), were “participants” in the Pension Plans for employees who worked at PGDP. In this action, Plaintiffs argue that they are not receiving the full retirement due to them under the Pension Plans and bring claims against Lockheed Martin Energy Systems (LMES), the United States Department of Energy (DOE), and the United States Enrichment Corporation (USEC) pursuant to the USEC Privatization Act, 42 U.S.C. § 2297h et seq., the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq., the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution, and 42 U.S.C. § 1983.

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Bluebook (online)
371 F. Supp. 2d 859, 2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13939, 2005 WL 1274388, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/edwards-v-united-states-department-of-energy-kywd-2005.