Hawkins v. Ohio Bell Telephone Co.

93 F.R.D. 547, 38 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1810, 1982 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10909
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Ohio
DecidedFebruary 17, 1982
DocketNo. C-3-79-206
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 93 F.R.D. 547 (Hawkins v. Ohio Bell Telephone Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Ohio primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hawkins v. Ohio Bell Telephone Co., 93 F.R.D. 547, 38 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1810, 1982 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10909 (S.D. Ohio 1982).

Opinion

DECISION AND ENTRY OVERRULING THREE OF PLAINTIFF’S OBJECTIONS TO REPORT OF MAGISTRATE; RULINGS DEFERRED ON REMAINING OBJECTIONS; FURTHER PROCEDURES ORDERED; CONFERENCE CALL SET

RICE, District Judge.

The captioned cause is before this Court pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 53(e)(2), upon Plaintiff’s objections to the Report and Recommendation of the U.S. Magistrate, recommending that Defendant’s motion to dismiss Plaintiff’s action under Fed.R.Civ.P. 41(b) be granted. For the reasons set out below, three of the Plaintiff’s objections to the Report are overruled, but rulings on the remaining two objections are deferred pending the preparation of a transcript of the proceedings had before the Magistrate.

I. PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

The Plaintiff in this action, Fritz Hawkins, was employed by Defendant Ohio Bell [550]*550Telephone Co. (Ohio Bell) from July 5,1942 to November 3, 1978, which period included three and one half years in the military service. Hawkins was a non-management employee of Ohio Bell from July 5, 1942 to August 31, 1968, and a management employee from September 1, 1968 to November 3, 1978. He was involuntarily retired from Ohio Bell on the latter date.

Plaintiff thereafter filed suit in this Court, alleging that Defendant had violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e et seq., and properly invoked the jurisdiction of this Court pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f)(3). The complaint stated that Plaintiff (a black male), due to his sex and race, was subjected to harassment by Ohio Bell management, denied training opportunities offered other employees, given meaningless job responsibilities, denied promotions, and, finally, terminated from his position despite his qualifications. In its answer, Ohio Bell denied these allegations and denied that the termination was violative of Title VII.

The action was referred to the U.S. Magistrate on June 8, 1979, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B), Fed.R.Civ.P. 53, and § 1.2(21) of then General Order IX of the Court.1 A non-jury trial of the action commenced before the Magistrate on March 2, 1981. On March 5, Plaintiff rested his case, and Defendant moved to dismiss the action pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 41(b) or, in the alternative, that judgment be entered in favor of the Defendant and Plaintiff take nothing upon his complaint, for reason that on the facts and the law, Plaintiff had shown no right to relief. On the same date the Magistrate indicated that he would recommend that the motion be granted, and on March 31, 1981, he filed a written Report and Recommendation to the same effect, said Report being filed to satisfy the requirements of Fed.R.Civ.P. 52(a). Plaintiff duly filed objections to the Report.

II. PLAINTIFF’S OBJECTIONS TO THE MAGISTRATE’S REPORT ARE OVERRULED IN PART, AND RULINGS ARE DEFERRED ON REMAINING OBJECTIONS.

This Court must first address the question of which standard should be applied in reviewing the Report. The incorrect citation in the Order of Reference, note 1, supra, creates some confusion as to the proper standard of review of the Report. In a case procedurally similar, though not identical, to the present one, the Sixth Circuit held that the reviewing district court must review the transcript of a hearing on the merits before the Magistrate. Hill v. Duriron Co., Inc., supra, note 1. In that case, two Orders of Reference by the District Judge incorrectly cited § 636(b)(1)(B). After a hearing on the merits, the Magistrate issued a Report recommending that judgment be entered in favor of the defendants. The plaintiffs filed a motion to review the Magistrate’s findings, and asked leave to file supplemental objections after they received a transcript of the hearing. The defendants in their supplemental objections also argued that the magistrate ignored substantial parts of the record, and demanded that the de novo review standard of § 636(b)(1)(C) be applied. The District Court reviewed the Magistrate’s Report under the “clearly erroneous” standard of Fed. R.Civ.P. 53(e)(2), without examining a transcript, and upheld the decision of the magistrate.

Upon review, the Sixth Circuit reversed, holding that “under the facts of this ease ... a knowing waiver of the right to de novo review of a referral pursuant to § 636(b)(1)(B), twice cited by the district [551]*551court,” could not be inferred. 656 F.2d at 1214. The Court concluded that:

In the present case it is difficult to discern how any meaningful review, much less a de novo determination, could have been made by the district court. The transcript of hearings before the magistrate had not been filed when the district court issued its order. Objections based on the magistrate’s treatment of the evidence could not be properly reviewed even under the clearly erroneous standard without a review of the record. The court must review at least those portions of the transcript of evidence which are relevant to the particular findings that are under attack. United States v. Certain Lands in City of Statesboro, 341 F.2d 742, 744-45 (5th Cir. 1965).

Id. at 1215.

Section 636(b) governs the referral of pre-trial motions and other matters to a Magistrate, and also designates standards under which this Court must review appeals of the Magistrate’s proposed findings of fact and recommendations on said motions. In a referral pursuant to § 636(b)(1)(B), incorrectly cited in the referral order (note 1, supra), the Magistrate may conduct hearings and submit proposed findings of fact, and recommendations for the disposition of certain motions. In contrast, in a referral pursuant to § 636(b)(2), the Magistrate may conduct a trial on the merits. Hill v. Duriron Co., supra, 656 F.2d at 1212-13; H.R. Rep.No. 94-1609, 94th Cong., 2d Sess. 12 (1976), reprinted in [1976] U.S.Code Cong. & Adm.News 6162, 6172. The standard of review following a referral pursuant to § 636(b)(1)(B) requires this Court to make a de novo determination of those proposed findings and recommendations to which objection is made. § 636(b)(1)(C). On the other hand, the findings of fact made by the Magistrate in a referral pursuant to § 636(b)(2) must be accepted unless clearly erroneous. Fed.R.Civ.P. 53(e)(2); Hill v. Duriron Co., supra. Under Fed.R.Civ.P. 53

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93 F.R.D. 547, 38 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1810, 1982 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10909, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hawkins-v-ohio-bell-telephone-co-ohsd-1982.