Gaines v. Columbus Civil Service Commission

913 N.E.2d 1039, 182 Ohio App. 3d 576
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 9, 2009
DocketNo. 08AP-971
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 913 N.E.2d 1039 (Gaines v. Columbus Civil Service Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gaines v. Columbus Civil Service Commission, 913 N.E.2d 1039, 182 Ohio App. 3d 576 (Ohio Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

Sadler, Judge.

{¶ 1} Appellant, Daryl Stephen Gaines, appeals from the judgment of the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, in which that court dismissed for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction appellant’s appeal from the decision of appellee, the city of Columbus Civil Service Commission, in which appellee dismissed appellant’s appeal from the termination of his employment.

{¶ 2} The undisputed factual and procedural history follows. On or about June 1, 2007, appellee selected appellant to fill the position of Refuse Collection Vehicle Operator (Manual). The position was temporarily vacant because the worker who normally held the position was recovering after sustaining an industrial injury. The record contains a form bearing both parties’ signatures, entitled “Limited Employment Information.” The signatures are dated June 1, 2007.

{¶ 3} The form states, “Your appointment to your new position has been designated with a ‘limited’ employment type. This means that your appointment to and continued service in the position is subject to the condition indicated below.” Below this language are four boxes, each with a different condition stated next to it. The box that is checked is situated next to the following language: “Completion of a set period of time in which the work is to be completed, or notice of termination, whichever occurs first; Time Period: 9 months or return of injured worker.” Just above the parties’ signatures, the form contains the following language: “At such time as the limited condition is met, you will be terminated from the position. This will not be regarded as a layoff or disciplinary action and you will not have the associated appeal rights under Commission Rules.”

{¶ 4} Civil Service Commission Rule X(F)(1), entitled “Limited Appointment,” states:

When it is necessary to fill a vacancy created as a result of granting a leave of absence to a regular employee, to fill a vacancy * * * for a limited position created in accordance with Rule IV(D)(3), the appointing authority may make [579]*579an appointment in accordance with these rules with the condition that the employment will not exceed the duration of such leave, work, project or period.
(a) Upon return of the regular incumbent to the original position at any time the services of the limited employee shall be automatically terminated without regard to the procedures contained herein for layoffs (Rule XII) or disciplinary removals (Rule XIII).

{¶ 5} On March 6, 2008, at the conclusion of the nine-month period of the appointment, appellant was terminated. On March 14, 2008, appellant appealed. Appellee reviewed the appeal and then, by letter dated April 29, 2008, dismissed it without a hearing, advising appellant that its rules do not permit an appeal from a termination of a limited appointment. Pursuant to R.C. 2506.01, appellant appealed to the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. Appellee filed a motion to dismiss, pursuant to Civ.R. 12(B)(1), arguing that the court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction over appellant’s appeal because the decision from which he appealed was not quasi-judicial in nature.

{¶ 6} In response, appellant filed a memorandum opposing the motion, along with a five-page affidavit relating to his background, the circumstances surrounding his employment, and his belief that he had acquired a property interest in the position from which he had been terminated. He argued that because he was a permanent, full-time employee, he could not be terminated without notice and a hearing. For support of this proposition, he pointed to language in another of his contract documents that indicated that he was granted an “original appointment” with a probationary period of 270 days. In its reply, appellee argued that appellant did not acquire a property interest in his continued employment because he was aware from the outset that his original appointment was a limited appointment of nine months’ duration.

{¶ 7} The court dismissed appellant’s appeal by decision dated September 4, 2008, and a final judgment entry was journalized on October 6, 2008. The court found that appellant had been given a limited original appointment to work full time for a period of nine months or until the return of the injured worker he was replacing. The court determined that the appointment was not for permanent employment and did not confer upon appellant a property right to continued employment. As such, the court found that appellee was not entitled to a hearing upon termination. The court also found that because it had not conducted a hearing procedure, appellee’s action was not quasi-judicial in nature and, therefore, the court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction over the appeal.

{¶ 8} Appellant timely appealed to this court and advances one assignment of error as follows:

[580]*580The Court below committed error in sustaining Appellee’s Motion to Dismiss on the basis that the Court lacked subject matter jurisdiction of Appellant’s appeal because Appellant did not have a property right in his continued employment with Appellee and because the Decision the subject of Appellant’s appeal was not quasi-judicial in nature.

{¶ 9} We review de novo a trial court’s decision to dismiss an action for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. Gonzales v. Ohio Dept. of Rehab. & Corr., 10th Dist. No. 08AP-567, 2009-Ohio-246, 2009 WL 154271, ¶ 6. In such a case, the question of law is whether the plaintiff has alleged any cause of action that the court has authority to decide. Id. R.C. 2506.01 provides for appeals from decisions of agencies of political subdivisions. However, that power extends only to orders resulting from quasi-judicial proceedings. Fortner v. Thomas (1970), 22 Ohio St.2d 13, 51 O.O.2d 35, 257 N.E.2d 371. As such, only those administrative actions arising out of quasi-judicial proceedings are appealable pursuant to R.C. Chapter 2506. M.J. Kelley Co. v. Cleveland (1972), 32 Ohio St.2d 150, 61 O.O.2d 394, 290 N.E.2d 562, paragraph one of the syllabus. The test to determine whether an administrative action is a quasi-judicial proceeding is whether the proceeding meets the requirements for notice, hearing, and the opportunity for introduction of evidence. Id. at paragraph two of the syllabus.

{¶ 10} The city of Columbus is a charter municipality. “Municipalities shall have authority to exercise all powers of local self-government and to adopt and enforce within their limits such local police, sanitary and other similar regulations, as are not in conflict with general laws.” Section 3, Article XVIII, Ohio Constitution. The Supreme Court of Ohio has held that “municipal charter and ordinance provisions enacted under the power of local self-government prevail over state statutes.” Ohio Assn. of Pub. School Emps., Chapter No. 471 v. Twinsburg (1988), 36 Ohio St.3d 180, 182, 522 N.E.2d 532. “It is well-settled in Ohio that regulation of city civil service is within the powers of local self-government.” Id. at 182-183, 522 N.E.2d 532.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Savoy v. Univ. of Akron
2014 Ohio 3043 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2014)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
913 N.E.2d 1039, 182 Ohio App. 3d 576, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gaines-v-columbus-civil-service-commission-ohioctapp-2009.