Ortiz v. Becton Dickinson Caribe, Ltd.

968 F. Supp. 2d 463, 2013 WL 5083862, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 131519
CourtDistrict Court, D. Puerto Rico
DecidedSeptember 13, 2013
DocketCivil No. 11-1507 (GAG)
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 968 F. Supp. 2d 463 (Ortiz v. Becton Dickinson Caribe, Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Puerto Rico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ortiz v. Becton Dickinson Caribe, Ltd., 968 F. Supp. 2d 463, 2013 WL 5083862, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 131519 (prd 2013).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

GUSTAVO A. GELPÍ, District Judge.

Maritza Zayas-Ortiz (“Plaintiff’), her husband, and their conjugal partnership1 bring suit against Becton Dickinson Caribe, Ltd., Becton Dickinson Puerto Rico, Inc., Becton Dickinson Co. (“BD”), and various insurance companies (collectively “Defendants”) for alleged violations of antidiscrimination statutes. (See Docket No. 1.) Specifically, Plaintiff brings claims of age and national origin discrimination in [466]*466violation of thé Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”), 29 U.S.C. §§ 621 et seq; and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”), 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e et seq. Plaintiff also brings claims for supplemental state law violations of Puerto Rico Law 80 of May 30, 1976 (“Law 80”), P.R. Laws Ann. tit. 29, §§ 185a et seq.; Puerto Rico Law 100 of June 30,1959 (“Law 100”), P.R. Laws Ann. tit. 29, §§ 146 et seq.; and Articles 1802 and 1803 of the Civil Code of Puerto Rico (“Articles 1802 & 1803”), P.R. Laws Ann. tit. 31, §§ 5141-5142. Defendants filed a motion to dismiss that was granted in part and denied in part. (See Docket No. 47.) Remaining before the court are Plaintiffs ADEA, Title VII, Law 80 and Law 100 claims. (See id.) On February 4, 2013, Defendants filed a motion for summary judgment seeking dismissal of the remaining claims. (Docket No. 105.) Plaintiff filed her opposition at Docket No. 115 and Defendants replied at Docket No. 145. After reviewing the parties’ submissions and pertinent law the court GRANTS Defendants’ motion for summary judgment at Docket No. 105.

I. Standard of Review

Summary judgment is appropriate when “the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). See Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a). “An issue is genuine if ‘it may reasonably be resolved in favor of either party’ at trial, and material if it ‘possesses] the capacity to sway the outcome of the litigation under the applicable law.’ ” Iverson v. City of Boston, 452 F.3d 94, 98 (1st Cir.2006) (alteration in original) (internal citations omitted). The moving party bears the initial burden of demonstrating the lack of evidence to support the nonmoving party’s case. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548. “The movant must aver an absence of evidence to support the nonmoving party’s case. The burden then shifts to the nonmovant to establish the existence of at least one fact issue which is both genuine and material.” Maldonado-Denis v. Castillo-Rodríguez, 23 F.3d 576, 581 (1st Cir.1994). The nonmovant may establish a fact is genuinely in dispute by citing particular evidence in the record or showing that either the materials cited by the movant “do not establish the absence or presence of a genuine dispute, or that an adverse party cannot produce admissible evidence to support the fact.” Fed. R.CrvP. 56(c)(1)(B). If the court finds that some genuine factual issue remains, the resolution of which could affect the outcome of the case, then the court must deny summary judgment. See Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).

When considering a motion for summary judgment, the court must view the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving party and give that party the benefit of any and all reasonable inferences. Id. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505. Moreover, at the summary judgment stage, the court does not make credibility determinations or weigh the evidence. Id. Summary judgment may be appropriate, however, if the non-moving party’s case rests merely upon “conclusory allegations, improbable inferences, and unsupported speculation.” Forestier Fradera v. Mun. of Mayaguez, 440 F.3d 17, 21 (1st Cir.2006) (quoting Benoit v. Technical Mfg. Corp., 331 F.3d 166,173 (1st Cir.2003)).

II. Defendants’ Objection to Plaintiffs Statement of Uncontested Facts

As a preliminary matter, Defendants raise objections to Plaintiffs opposition to [467]*467Defendants’ statements of uncontested facts. Defendants claim Plaintiff runs afoul of the anti-ferreting rule. {See Docket No. 145 at 1.) Local Rule 56(c) states:

A party opposing a motion for summary judgment shall submit with its opposition a separate, short, and concise statement of material facts. The opposing statement shall admit, deny or qualify the facts supporting the motion for summary judgment by reference to each numbered paragraph of the moving party’s statement of material facts. Unless a fact is admitted, the opposing statement shall support each denial or qualification by a record citation as required by this rule. The opposing statement may contain in a separate section additional facts, set forth in separate numbered paragraphs and supported by a record citation as required by subsection (e) of this rule.

L.CV.R. 56(c). Rule 56 continues in subsection (e) to state, “Facts contained in a supporting or opposing statement of material facts, if supported by record citations as required by this rule, shall be deemed admitted unless properly controverted.” L.CV.R. 56(e). Together; these rules require an opposing party to admit, deny or qualify the facts of the moving party, and to explain the reasons for denials or qualifications with record citations. If the opposing party wishes to include any additional facts to supplement the facts of the moving party, the opposing party must include those facts in a separate section. L.CV.R. 56(c); Malave-Torres v. Cusido, 919 F.Supp.2d 198, 207 (D.P.R.2013) (disregarding additional facts contained within plaintiffs opposition to defendant’s statement of uncontested facts). This separate section containing additional facts is necessary to allow the moving party to reply to those additional facts and to allow the court to easily determine the disputed facts. See L.CV.R. 56(d) (governing reply statements of material facts). Therefore, a party may not include numerous additional facts within its opposition to the moving party’s statements of uncontested facts. See Acevedo-Parrilla v. Novartis Ex-Lax, Inc., 696 F.3d 128, 137 (1st Cir.2012) (citing Carreras v. Sajo, Garcia & Partners, 596 F.3d 25

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Bluebook (online)
968 F. Supp. 2d 463, 2013 WL 5083862, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 131519, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ortiz-v-becton-dickinson-caribe-ltd-prd-2013.