Hylind v. Xerox Corp.

31 F. Supp. 3d 729, 2014 WL 3419475, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 92937, 123 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1281
CourtDistrict Court, D. Maryland
DecidedJuly 9, 2014
DocketCivil No. PJM 03-116
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 31 F. Supp. 3d 729 (Hylind v. Xerox Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Maryland primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Hylind v. Xerox Corp., 31 F. Supp. 3d 729, 2014 WL 3419475, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 92937, 123 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1281 (D. Md. 2014).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

PETER J. MESSITTE, District Judge.

I.

Introduction

Eileen M. Hylind sued Xerox Corporation for sexual discrimination and retaliation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq. Following a jury trial, she was awarded compensatory damages, subsequently capped by the Court at the statutory maximum of $300,000, and $896,509 in economic damages (back pay). The Court offset pay[733]*733ments Hylind received pursuant to Xerox’s disability plan from the back pay award.

Both parties appealed to the Fourth Circuit. The case returns to this Court on remand from the Fourth Circuit to determine a narrow issue: To what extent should payments by Xerox to Hylind under its disability plan be set off against her back pay award in this, a sexual discrimination case?

II.

Procedural History

The factual background of this case is set out in the Court’s Opinion of August 15, 2008. ECF No. 340. The following aspects of the case’s procedural history are relevant to the present issue before the Court.

The Court previously determined that “the period of disability attributable to Xerox’s actionable conduct in this case, and thus the period of back pay, should be 8 years.” Hylind v. Xerox Corp., 749 F.Supp.2d 340, 346 (D.Md.2010) aff'd in part, rev’d in part and remanded, 481 Fed.Appx. 819 (4th Cir.2012). Those eight years covered the years 1995 to 2002. The Court further found that “the appropriate base salary for measuring Hylind’s back pay should be the average of the salaries she actually received in the four years preceding her discontinuance of work in 1995, with increases to reflect reasonable expected salary increases over the relevant 8-year period.” Id. at 348. After concluding that disability benefits that Hylind received under Xerox’s disability plan ultimately should be considered compensation paid Hylind by Xerox, the Court held that “for each year as to which back pay is awarded, Hylind’s award of salary and benefits will be reduced by thé amount of disability pay she received in that year.” Id. at 350. The Court did not offset any disability payments made after the back pay period, because it was only for the 8 year back pay period that the Court “determined Hylind’s disability was caused by Xerox’s actionable conduct.” Id. at 351.

Both Hylind and Xerox appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, which “affirm[ed] the judgment of the district court in each respect, except for its decision to offset Hylind’s disability payment from her back pay award.” Hylind v. Xerox Corp., 481 Fed.Appx. 819, 825 (4th Cir.2012). The Fourth Circuit thus vacated the damages award and remanded to this Court in light of the Fourth Circuit’s holding in Sloas v. CSX Transp. Inc., 616 F.3d 380 (4th Cir.2010) “that the mere fact ‘[t]hat a benefit comes from the defendant ... does not itself preclude the possibility that it is from a collateral source.’ ” Id. (quoting Sloas, 616 F.3d at 389).

Once the case returned to this Court, the Court held a teleconference with the parties, set a briefing schedule, and subsequently held a motions hearing to determine, in light of Sloas, whether the disability benefits should be set off from the back pay award.'

At the hearing, the Court noted the dearth of evidence bearing on the issue before it and asked the parties if they felt that an evidentiary hearing or additional discovery would be appropriate. Oct. 24, 2013 Tr. 41:7-14, 57.-3-6.1 Both Hylind and Xerox declined the opportunity, maintaining that there was sufficient evidence in the record as it stood for the Court to make a decision. Id. at 41:17-21, 41:23-[734]*73443:1, 52:3-11. Even so, Hylind submitted documentation to the Court with her briefing, but it was both then and now unclear to what extent those exhibits had actually been admitted at trial. Accordingly, the Court allowed Xerox to choose to either contest the documents Hylind had submitted as not properly part of the record before the Court, or to accept those submissions and at the same time submit its own documents. Id. at 56:2-7, 57:7-13. Following the hearing, Xerox chose to file an affidavit with additional documentation, and the Court permitted Hylind to depose the affiant and submit a written response, which she did.

At the time of the October, 2013 hearing, Xerox represented to the Court that its disability policy was a document entitled “Personnel Manual, Personnel Policy Number 502.1.2 ECF Nos. 509-1, 521-3 * (“Personnel Manual”).” The Court noted, however, that the Personnel Manual was not actually a policy, but rather a summary of its contents, and indicated that it wanted to see the actual policy. Tr. 47:1-10. Only after the hearing did Xerox produce the actual disability plan, a document entitled “Xerox Medical Care and Long Term Disability Income Plan. ECF No. 521-2 (“Plan”).”

As it turns out, Article 7 of the Plan states that the terms and provisions of the Personnel Manual govern long term disability benefits. Gauger Aff. ¶ 5 at ECF No. 521-1. Xerox also filed with the Court a summary of benefits entitled “You and Xerox: Benefits for Salaried Employees”. ECF No. 521-5 (“You and Xerox”); Gau-ger Aff. ¶ 9.

The- Court has reviewed the material before it. For the following reasons, it concludes that the disability payments should not have been deducted from the back pay award, and that the total of the disability payments to be added back in should be $34,819.00 per year for 8 years, a total of $278,552. The total back pay due to Hylind, for the years 1995 to 2002, with the disability payments added back in, thus comes to $1,445,781.3 See Exhibit A hereto. Counsel will be directed to submit interest worksheets as described infra.

The Court explains.

III.

Collateral Source Rule

As a general rule, back pay is to be awarded to successful Title VII plaintiffs. Albemarle Paper Co. v. Moody, 422 U.S. 405, 421-22, 95 S.Ct. 2362, 45 L.Ed.2d 280 (1975). The back pay award is “intended to make the victims of unlawful discrimination whole,” restoring them “to a position where they would have been where it not for the unlawful discrimination.” Id. at 421, 95 S.Ct. 2362.

Certain payments the plaintiff receives from sources collateral to, or independent of, the tortfeasor may not be offset from a back pay award under the collateral source rule. “The collateral source rule holds that ‘compensation from a collateral source should be disregarded in assessing tort damages.’” Sloas, 616 F.3d at 389 (quoting United States v. Price, 288 F.2d 448, 449-50 (4th Cir.1961)). The rule specifically “bars a tortfeasor from reducing the quantum of damages owed to a plaintiff by the amount of recovery the plaintiff receives from other [735]

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31 F. Supp. 3d 729, 2014 WL 3419475, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 92937, 123 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1281, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hylind-v-xerox-corp-mdd-2014.