Nobler v. Beth Israel Medical Center

702 F. Supp. 1023, 1988 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14541, 48 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 38,650, 52 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1187, 1988 WL 141438
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedDecember 20, 1988
Docket87 Civ. 0569 (RWS)
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 702 F. Supp. 1023 (Nobler v. Beth Israel Medical Center) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Nobler v. Beth Israel Medical Center, 702 F. Supp. 1023, 1988 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14541, 48 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 38,650, 52 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1187, 1988 WL 141438 (S.D.N.Y. 1988).

Opinion

OPINION

SWEET, District Judge.

Defendant Beth Israel Medical Center (“BIMC”) has moved pursuant to Rule 56 of F.R.Civ.P. for summary judgment to dismiss the complaint of plaintiff Dr. Myron P. Nobler (“Nobler”). Nobler alleges that BIMC failed to promote him for Directorship of BIMC’s new Radiation Therapy Department because of his age in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq. (“ADEA”), and that as a result of this discrimination, he was forced to resign from BIMC. For the reasons set forth below, BIMC’s motion, which was argued on September 7, 1988, is denied as to Nobler’s claim of failure to promote. The motion for summary judgment is granted on the constructive discharge claim.

Facts

Nobler is a specialist in the field of radiation therapy. He is 56 years old. In 1967, Nobler was hired by BIMC to develop its Division of Radiation Therapy. Under his leadership, the division became one of the best radiation therapy units in New York City. In addition, in 1968, Nobler was appointed Assistant Professor of Radiotherapy at Mount Sinai School of Medicine (“Mount Sinai”), and in 1977 was promoted to Associate Professor.

Throughout Dr. Nobler’s employment by BIMC, radiation therapy and diagnostic radiology were combined in one department, the Department of Radiology and Radiation Therapy. The Director of the Department was Dr. Norman Leeds (“Leeds”), a diagnostic radiologist who was selected by a search committee in 1984. Nobler was Chief of the Department’s radiation therapy division, and reported directly to Leeds.

In early 1985, BIMC established the Kris-er Lung Cancer Center (the “Kriser Center”) and hired Dr. Edward Beattie (“Beat-tie”) to be Director of the Kriser Center and Chief of Thoracic Surgery. Beattie was 69 years old. To complement the heightened focus on cancer treatment that would result from the establishment of the Kriser Center, in July, 1985, BIMC decided to separate its Department of Radiology and Radiation Therapy into two departments: a Department of Radiology and a Department of Radiation Therapy.

BIMC is affiliated with Mount Sinai for purposes of teaching, research and faculty appointments. Under the terms of BIMC’s affiliation agreement with Mount Sinai, BIMC department directors must be chosen by a search committee appointed by the Dean of Mount Sinai and composed of doctors from BIMC and from the Mount Sinai Medical Center (“MSMC”).

Pursuant to the agreement between BIMC and Mount Sinai, Dr. Robert Newman (“Newman”), President and Chief Executive Officer of BIMC, recommended four BIMC faculty members for service on a Search Committee (the “Search Committee” or the “Committee”) to select a director for BIMC’s new Radiation Therapy Department, all of whom were officially appointed to the Committee by the Dean of Mount Sinai. The four members were Leeds, Director of Radiology and Radiation Therapy; Dr. Robert Wallach, Director of Obstetrics/Gynecology and head of BIMC’s Cancer Committee, Dr. Ralph Zalusky, Associate Director of Medicine specializing in Hematology/Oncology; and Dr. Bernard Kabakow (“Kabakow”), an Oncologist and member of BIMC’s Department of Medi *1025 cine. Newman also served on the Committee. In addition, five physicians from MSMC were appointed by Mount Sinai’s Dean, but only two of them were active on the Committee: Dr. William Bloomer (“Bloomer”), Chairman of Mount Sinai’s Department of Radiotherapy and Dr. Ange-los Papatestas, Professor of Surgery. The average age of the men actively serving on the Committee was 51 years old.

In the autumn of 1985, the Search Committee reviewed the curriculum vitaes (CYs) of six candidates, ranging in age from Dr. Bhadrasian Vikram (“Vikram”), who was 36 years old, to Dr. Basil Hilaris (“Hilaris”), who was 57. Nobler, at 53, was the second oldest candidate after Hi-laris. Following examination of the CVs, the Committee met separately with each candidate and discussed with them their ideas for the development of the new department.

The Search Committee did not have formal guidelines for criteria to apply in selecting a Director. According to Leeds, the Committee sought a director with substantial leadership skills and achievements, and one who had a “vision” for the department’s growth and development. Leeds Dep. 25-26. Newman, too, said that a candidate’s leadership abilities and goals for the future of the Department were important:

[t]he committee was looking for somebody that could develop the new Department of Radiation/Oncology as a major force within the medical center, a service of renown throughout the city and hopefully beyond the city.... We wanted a candidate who would convey a sharing of the sense of excitement that existed certainly among the Beth Israel members of the search committee regarding the opportunity, regarding the potential, regarding where the department would be brought to in the next three year and five years.... We wanted a leader of the department that we viewed as being one of the tremendous forces in the future of the medical center.

Newman Dep. 80-81. Further, according to Newman, the Committee looked for “somebody who would have the respect and the admiration of physicians within the medical center, who would have the respect and admiration of the people in the general community.” Newman Dep. 81. See also Leeds Dep. 27-28:

The message was loud and clear ... [our goal was] to choose the best possible person to lead a new department of radiation oncology, who would be both a therapist, an innovator and a leader in the field and do both clinical work and research and build a strong department.

In December 1985, after the Search Committee had met once with each candidate, the Committee divided the candidates into two groups, and, according to Nobler, ended its consideration of the candidates in the lower group. Two of the three candidates in the lower group were Nobler and Hilar-is. At ages 53 and 57, respectively, Nobler and Hilaris were the oldest candidates; the remaining candidates were 36, 38 and 42. According to Newman, he told Nobler that he was still under consideration by the Committee, but that he was no longer among the top three candidates. Newman Dep. 92-93. Nobler, however, contends that Newman told him that the field had been narrowed to three candidates, and that he was not among them. Nobler Dep. 147. Testimony by other Committee members confirms that the Committee eliminated Nobler from consideration in December 1985.

According to BIMC, Hilaris was eliminated by the Committee as a potential director in part because of his physical condition— he had suffered two coronaries and a bypass — and in part because his ideas for the department would have required large amounts of money to implement. In connection with the discussion on Hilaris, Dr. Kabakow also mentioned his age as a consideration of the Committee.

In explanation of Nobler’s rejection, members of the Selection Committee have stated that in his interview before the Committee Nobler focused on his past accomplishments rather than on a new plan for the future of the Department. See, e.g., Bloomer Dep. 68. See also

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702 F. Supp. 1023, 1988 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14541, 48 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 38,650, 52 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1187, 1988 WL 141438, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/nobler-v-beth-israel-medical-center-nysd-1988.