Mitchell-Carr v. McLendon

1999 NMSC 025, 980 P.2d 65, 127 N.M. 282
CourtNew Mexico Supreme Court
DecidedMay 3, 1999
Docket23845
StatusPublished
Cited by102 cases

This text of 1999 NMSC 025 (Mitchell-Carr v. McLendon) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mitchell-Carr v. McLendon, 1999 NMSC 025, 980 P.2d 65, 127 N.M. 282 (N.M. 1999).

Opinion

OPINION

MINZNER, Chief Justice.

{1} Appellants Mary Ann Mitchell-Carr, Mildred Smith, Robert Vaughan, and Bernardino Herrera are former officers and members of the Office and Professional Employees International Union. Appellants filed a complaint in the district court alleging that the Union and its president, William McLendon, discriminated against them in violation of the New Mexico Human Rights Act (NMHRA), NMSA 1978, §§ 28-1-1 to - 7, 28-1-9 to-14 (1969, as amended through 1995). The complaint also asserted allegations of prima facie tort against McLendon. In response to motions by Appellees McLendon and the Union, the district court issued an order granting summary judgment to McLendon on all claims against him, and another order granting summary judgment to the Union on the NMHRA claims of Mitchell-Carr, Smith, and Vaughan. In addition, the district court denied Appellants’ motion to disqualify their opposing counsel, quashed a subpoena directed to a member of opposing counsel’s firm, and issued a protective order relating to that member of the firm.

{2} Mitchell-Carr, Smith, and Vaughan appeal from the district court’s order granting summary judgment to McLendon and the Union on the NMHRA claims. Herrera appeals from the order granting summary judgment to McLendon on the NMHRA claims. All Appellants appeal from the order granting summary judgment to McLendon on the prima facie tort claims, and from the orders relating to disqualification and discovery. This Court has jurisdiction to hear the appeal under Section 28-1-13(0). For the reasons stated below, we affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

{3} With respect to the NMHRA claims against McLendon, we conclude that the district court properly granted summary judgment because Appellants failed to name McLendon as an individual respondent in the complaints they filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). With respect to the NMHRA claims against the Union, we conclude that the district court’s grant of summary judgment was reversible error because -the notices of right to sue issued by the EEOC were not sufficient to trigger the statutory time limit for filing an appeal in the district court and Appellants exhausted their administrative remedies by obtaining orders of nondetermination from the New Mexico Human Rights Division. We conclude that the district court’s order granting summary judgment on Appellants’ prima facie tort claims was a partial summary judgment because McLendon’s summary judgment motion did not address all of the allegations in the complaint. Finally, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in ruling on the parties’ motions relating to discovery and disqualification of opposing counsel.

i.

{4} Appellants’ claims are based on allegations that, while serving as Union officials, Smith and Vaughan discovered a letter addressed to Smith, which Smith had never seen. The letter indicated that the Union’s international had transmitted a check to settle a lawsuit. Smith later learned that the cheek had been transferred to Jay Thomas Youngdahl, the Union’s attorney in that lawsuit. The discovery of this letter led to conflict within the Union about the propriety of transferring the check to Youngdahl. This conflict escalated to Union action against Appellants, to charges against the Union involving the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and the EEOC, and finally to the district court complaint that is the basis of this appeal.

{5} Pursuant to a charge of unfair labor practices by Mitchell-Carr and Smith, the NLRB filed a complaint against the Union for violations of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), 29 U.S.C. §§ 151-169 (1994). An administrative law judge (ALJ) dismissed the NLRB’s complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The ALJ’s decision was appealed to the NLRB, Region 28,- in Washington, D.C. The disposition of that appeal is not in the record.

{6} All four Appellants filed charges of discrimination with the EEOC under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e to 2000e-17 (1994). The EEOC issued a notice of right to sue to Mitchell-Carr on May 13, 1994, to Smith on June 16, 1994, to Vaughan on June 28, 1994, and to Herrera on July 22, 1994. Appellants filed their Complaint in district court on August 12,1994.

{7} The Union and McLendon initially responded to the district court complaint by filing a motion to dismiss in which they alleged, among other things, that Appellants had failed to file their grievances with the Division. At a hearing on December 8,1994, the district court took the motion under advisement and allowed Appellants thirty days to supplement the record with documentation from the Division to show that their administrative remedies had been exhausted. While the motion was under advisement, Appellants obtained four orders of nondetermination from the Division. Appellants filed a notice of appeal from those orders in the district court on December 16, 1994. The district court later entered an order denying the motion to dismiss.

{8} On October 6, 1994, Appellants moved to disqualify opposing counsel, as well as opposing counsel’s entire firm, because Youngdahl was a member of that firm. The district court denied the motion but advised Appellants that their motion would be reconsidered if they developed sufficient evidence to demonstrate that opposing counsel should be disqualified. Subsequently, Appellants issued Youngdahl a subpoena and attempted to depose him. The Union and McLendon responded with a motion for a protective order in which they asked the district court to quash the subpoena and impose sanctions. The district court granted the motion for a protective order, quashed the subpoena, and took the issue of sanctions under advisement.

{9} At the close of discovery, the Union moved for summary judgment on the NMHRA claims filed by Mitchell-Carr, Smith, and Vaughan on the ground that these Appellants did not file their complaint in district court within the statutory time limit. McLendon also moved for summary judgment on these grounds. In addition, McLendon’s summary judgment motion called for dismissal of all Appellants’ claims on the grounds that they failed to name McLendon as an individual respondent in the complaints they filed with the EEOC, and that their prima facie tort claims were preempted by federal law. The district court granted the Union summary judgment with respect to the NMHRA claims of Mitchell-Carr, Smith, arid Vaughan, including in its order a determination that there was “no just reason for delay.” The district court also granted McLendon summary judgment against all Appellants with respect to both their NMHRA claims and their prima facie tort claims, again stating in its order that there was “no just reason for delay.” Both orders are final for purposes of appeal. See Rule 1-054(0(1), (2) NMRA1999.

II.

{10} In order to invoke the grievance procedure provided in the NMHRA, Appellants were required to file a complaint with the Division within 180 days after the unlawful acts occurred. Section 28-l-10(A). They did not file a complaint against McLendon within this period.

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Bluebook (online)
1999 NMSC 025, 980 P.2d 65, 127 N.M. 282, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mitchell-carr-v-mclendon-nm-1999.