Okun v. Montefiore Medical Center

970 F. Supp. 2d 267, 2013 WL 4856165, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129742
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedSeptember 10, 2013
DocketNo. 11 Civ. 9615(PGG)
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 970 F. Supp. 2d 267 (Okun v. Montefiore 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
Okun v. Montefiore Medical Center, 970 F. Supp. 2d 267, 2013 WL 4856165, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129742 (S.D.N.Y. 2013).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION & ORDER

PAUL G. GARDEPHE, District Judge:

Plaintiff Alexander Okun, M.D., was employed at Defendant Montefiore Medical Center (“Montefiore”) for 23 years as an attending pediatrician and as an associate professor of pediatrics at the Einstein College of Medicine. On May 13, 2011, he was terminated “for cause” by Dr. Andrew Racine, his department chair at Montefiore. As a result, he was not offered severance payments pursuant to Montefiore’s severance policy. Dr. Okun brings this action alleging that Defendants (1) interfered with his rights under a severance plan governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”), in violation of ERISA § 510, 29 U.S.C. § 1140; (2) deprived him of severance benefits due under the plan, in violation of ERISA § 502(a)(1)(B), 29 U.S.C. [269]*269§ 1132(a)(1)(B); and (3) failed to make a reasonable accommodation for his disability in violation of the New York State Human Rights Law (“NYSHRL”) and the New York City Human Rights Law (“NYCHRL”).

Defendants have moved to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1), arguing that this Court does not have subject matter jurisdiction because Montefiore’s severance policy is not an “employee welfare benefit plan” under ERISA. (Dkt. No. 9) For the reasons set forth below, Defendants’ motion will be GRANTED.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiff was a physician at Montefiore for 23 years. (Cmplt. ¶ 14) On May 1, 2011, Plaintiff gave notice that he had accepted a position in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and that he would be leaving Montefiore that September. (Id. ¶ 26) On May 13, 2011, Dr. Racine fired plaintiff “for cause,” allegedly because he disapproved of a question Plaintiff asked during a faculty meeting with an outside speaker. (Id. ¶ 50) As a result of this “for cause” termination, Defendants refused to pay Plaintiff severance benefits under Montefiore’s written severance policy, H.R. Policy No. 11-17. (Id. ¶ 68)

The stated purpose of Montefiore’s severance policy is “to provide terminal benefits to full time salaried [physicians] with one or more years of employment.” Schmidt Deck, Ex. A (Severance Policy at 1) The policy applies to “[a]ll full-time [physicians] employed before August 1, 1996.” (Id.) Under the policy, any physician “employed before August 1, 1996 who is terminated for other than cause may opt either for a notice period or severance pay.” Id. at 2. The severance policy does not define a “for cause” termination.

The “notice period” is defined as follows:

If a [physician] opts for a notice period, during that period, he/she shall be expected to continue to fulfill the duties and responsibilities of his/her position and shall continue to receive his/her salary and be covered by the fringe benefits to which he/she is entitled as an employee, at the level to which he/she was entitled immediately prior to the commencement of the notice period.

(Id.) If the physician opts for “severance pay” instead of the notice period, he or she “shall leave the employment of [Montefiore] and shall receive bi-weekly severance payments ... disbursed on a bi-weekly basis on the [physician’s] normal payday for the duration of the severance period.” (Id.) “The amount of each bi-weekly payment will be l/26th of the base annual Medical Center earnings of the [physician] in effect immediately prior to the commencement of the severance/notice period, exclusive of supplemental income and fringe benefits.” Id.

Physicians such as Plaintiff who have been employed at Montefiore for more than fifteen years are entitled to their “[c]hoiee of twelve month’s notice or six month’s severance pay,” provided that they are not terminated “for cause.” (Id.) Physicians with more than fifteen years of service are also “entitled to automatic review of the amount of severance pay by the President of [Montefiore].” (Id.)

The policy provides that once terminated, eligible physicians will receive a “written notice of termination with a description of their options, i.e., notice period or salary continuation.” (Id. at 3) The policy requires terminated physicians to choose between severance pay and notice period benefits within seven days of receiving their “written notice of termination.” (Id.) If a physician does not make a choice within the seven-day period, he or she [270]*270“will be deemed to have elected the notice period.” (Id.) If the physician elects severance pay, “it cannot be changed to notice once the salary continuation is started.” (Id.) Even if a physician opts for the notice period, Montefíore retains the right to “require that [physician to] leave [Montefiore] immediately or at any time during the notice period.” (Id.) “In such a case, unless the [physician] is terminated for cause, during the balance of the notice period, the [physician] shall receive biweekly severance payments....” (Id.)

The policy further provides that it “may be changed, modified or discontinued at any time by [Montefiore’s] Senior Vice President of Human Resources, or designee, with or without notice. Exceptions do not invalidate the basic policy.” (Id.) The severance policy does not provide for plan fiduciaries, employee contributions, formal procedures for submitting claims, a specific trustee or plan administrator, or monies set aside or held in trust.

Because Plaintiff was terminated “for cause,” he was not offered either severance pay or a notice period under the severance policy. (CmpltV 84)

The Complaint was filed on December 28, 2011. (Dkt. No. 1) Defendants filed their motion to dismiss on September 24, 2012. (Dkt. No. 9)

DISCUSSION

I. LEGAL STANDARD

“Determining the existence of subject matter jurisdiction is a threshold inquiry, and a claim is properly dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction under Rule 12(b)(1) when the district court lacks the statutory or constitutional power to adjudicate it.” Morrison v. Nat’l Austl. Bank Ltd., 547 F.3d 167, 170 (2d Cir.2008), aff'd, 561 U.S. 247, 130 S.Ct. 2869, 177 L.Ed.2d 535 (2010). “On a motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), ‘[t]he plaintiff bears the burden of proving subject matter jurisdiction by a preponderance of the evidence.’ ” Sharehold Representative Sens. LLC v. Sandoz Inc., No. 12 Civ. 6154(DLC), 2013 WL 4015901, at *6 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 7, 2013) (quoting Aurecchione v. Schoolman Transp. System, Inc., 426 F.3d 635, 638 (2d Cir.2005)). “In reviewing such a motion, the court ‘must accept as true all material factual allegations in the complaint, but [is] not to draw inferences from the complaint favorable to plaintiff! ]•’ ” Id. (quoting J.S. ex rel. N.S. v. Attica Cent. Schs.,

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970 F. Supp. 2d 267, 2013 WL 4856165, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129742, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/okun-v-montefiore-medical-center-nysd-2013.