Palmgren v. Fawcett

1984 Mass. App. Div. 177, 1984 Mass. App. Div. LEXIS 76

This text of 1984 Mass. App. Div. 177 (Palmgren v. Fawcett) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Massachusetts District Court, Appellate Division primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Palmgren v. Fawcett, 1984 Mass. App. Div. 177, 1984 Mass. App. Div. LEXIS 76 (Mass. Ct. App. 1984).

Opinion

Lenhoff, J.

The plaintiff’s complaint in two (2) counts alleges (1) libel; and, (2) intentional infliction of mental distress. The defendant’s answer, in response thereto, denied same.

After trial, the plaintiff submitted what was stated to be seven (7) requests [178]*178for rulings,1 all being requested “as a matter of law upon all the evidence.”

Thereafter, the Trial Court ordered that judgment enter for the defendant on each count. Subsequently, the plaintiff seasonably filed a motion pursuant to Dist./Mun. Cts. R. Civ. P., Rules 52 and 59 to alter or amend the Trial Court’s findings and judgment. Said motion was denied.

The evidence set forth in the report is supplemented by evidence stated in the Trial Court’s findings thereby enabling the Appellate Division to have a broader and more complete evidentiary background. Olofson v. Kilgallon, 362 Mass. 803, 804-805 (1973). As so supplemented, the evidence tends to show the following:

The plaintiff and defendant were both employees of the Peter Pan Bus Lines, employed at its Northampton, Massachusetts office. The plaintiff served as office manager.

An apparent cash receipt shortage occurred causing the defendant to visit the Vice President of her employer in connection therewith. The defendant made no allegation concerning the plaintiff relating thereto to employer’s official. The plaintifff, when she learned of the defendant seeing the Vice President, reprimanded the defendant for doing so.

' The defendant in November, 1980 was hired by the plaintiff. The defendant voluntarily ended her employment with the Bus Line in September, 1982.

At the end of March, 1983, the Peter Pan Bus Lines’ Western Massachusetts personnel head called the plaintiff and informed her of a letter concerning her that he had received. The letter was unsigned and a copy was also sent to the Bus Line’s Vice President, to three other officer employers, and to one steady customer. Later, the defendant acknowledged authorship of the letter.

The letter, in substance, set forth: (1) that the defendant did not consider the plaintiff pleasant and sincere as a fellow co-worker; (2) that the plaintiff had taken advantage of others; (3) that the plaintiff acted “sweet,” but was actually “ruthless;” (4) that she was greedy for power; (5) that the plaintiff resented others who she regarded as threatening her authority (6) that in certain circumstances, her job performance could have been better; (7) that the plaintiff made the defendant's life difficult and strained; (8) that the plaintiff showed favoritism to others that was detrimental to the defendant; (9) that the defendant gave her employer 23 months of devoted service and only received a 35$ raise; (10) that the plaintiff told the defendant she was an unprofessional person; and, (11) that the plaintiffs treatment to subordinates merited severe critical comment.

By reason of said letter being mailed to the Bus Lines official and copies to others, the plaintiff became emotionally upset. She lost weight, began making mistakes at work, curtailed her social life, had trouble sleeping and is just [179]*179getting back to normal. The letter shocked and hurt her. It caused her to worry about the opinion of people concerning her. She also worried about getting fired from her job.

Her salary in March, 1980 was approximately $225.00 weekly; and, as of March, 1983, was $275.00 weekly.

The Trial Court ruled regarding Count 1 (libel) that the letter written by the defendant “was not defamatory and thus not libellous.” Said Trial Court cited the case of Pritsker v. Brudnoy, 389 Mass. 776 (1983), and stated the following quote therefrom appearing on page 778 taken from RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF TORTS, Section 566 (1977), Comment b., therein: “A ‘pure’ opinion by itself is not actionable ‘no matter how unjustified and unreasonable the opinion may be or how derogatory it is.’ ” Also, the Trial Court pointed out that the Supreme Judicial Court in said Pritsker v. Brudnoy case, supra, held that calling the owners of a restaurant “unconscionably rude” and “vulgar” and “pigs” constituted pure opinion based on partly disclosed and partly assumed facts.

Regarding Count II of the plaintiffs complaint (intentional infliction of emotional distress), the Trial Court stated:

It is unclear to this Court what the Plaintiff intends to allege in Count II. It appears that the Plaintiff alleges that the allegedly libellous letter complained of in Count I of the complaint caused intentional infliction of emotional and mental distress.
If the Court held that the letter complained of was libellous, the Court would have considered mental and emotional suffering as well as any special damages in the determination of an award. Having found the letter non-defamatory, if Count II is grounded upon this theory, it must fail.
If on the other hand, the Plaintiff intends to allege a separate tort of infliction of emotional distress in Count II, this also must fail. To establish such a tort, the Plaintiff must prove (1) an intentional act (2) amounting to extreme and outrageous conduct (3) causing severe emotional distress to another (4) by one not privileged to do so. I do not find all of these elements present in the instant case.

The plaintiff, being aggrieved by the Trial Court’s Order for Judgment on Counts I and II; its action on the plaintiffs Requests for Rulings one (1) to seven (7) inclusive; and the Trial Court’s denial of a Dist./Mun. Cts. R. Civ. P., Rule 52 and 59 motion to alter or amend its finding and judgment, seeks the determination of the Appellate Division of said grievances.

The plaintiffs grievance that the Trial Court denied its motion to alter or amend its finding and judgment cánnot be considered. The reason we do not give our concern or attention results from the failure of the plaintiff to include, annex or incorporate a copy of the motion in the Report. Such failure does not comply with Dis./Mun. Cts. R. Civ. P., Rule 64 (c) (2) that a copy of the “pleading necessary for the understanding or decision of the questions shall be annexed to or incorporated in the draft report.”

Consequently, the only matters before this body are the plaintiffs Requests for Rulings, the disposition thereof also disposing of the ensuing Order for Judgment.

Request No. 5 states a fact based on the evidence and was so found by the Trial Court. It involves no question of law for resolution.

All the other requests are dealt with in a joint manner by the discussion that follows.

[180]*180- Findings of fact by the Trial Court are conclusive if there be. any credible evidence to support them. Glazier v. Andrews, 349 Mass. 417 (1965), Scire v. Scire, 348 Mass. 768 (1964); Piekos v. Bachand, 333 Mass. 211, 213 (1955). Such findings will not be disturbed if they can be supported on any reasonable view of the evidence, even if conflicting. Dileso v. Bellino, 338 Mass. 801 (1959).

The following quote appears hereinbefore and is here repeated for purposes of continuity in the discussion part hereof.

In Pritsker v. Brudnoy, 389 Mass. 776, 778 (1983), the Court said:

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1984 Mass. App. Div. 177, 1984 Mass. App. Div. LEXIS 76, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/palmgren-v-fawcett-massdistctapp-1984.