Phillips v. United States

77 Fed. Cl. 513, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 234, 2007 WL 2172772
CourtUnited States Court of Federal Claims
DecidedJuly 25, 2007
DocketNo. 06-509
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 77 Fed. Cl. 513 (Phillips v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Federal Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Phillips v. United States, 77 Fed. Cl. 513, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 234, 2007 WL 2172772 (uscfc 2007).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

HEWITT, Judge.

Plaintiff seeks enforcement of the terms of a Discrimination Complaint Settlement Agreement (Agreement) entered into with defendant to settle his complaint of gender discrimination pursuant to Title YII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e (2000), and the Civil Rights Act of 1991, 42 U.S.C. § 1981a. Amended Complaint (Am.Compl.), Mar. 1, 2007,1.

I. Background

A. Procedural History

This ease was originally filed in the District Court for the Northern District of Florida (District Court) on November 4, 2005. In response to a motion by defendant to the District Court, filed March 20, 2006, to dismiss the claim pursuant to Rule 12(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure for lack of jurisdiction, Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss and Memorandum and Points of Authorities in Support of [sic] 1, Phillips v. Dominguez, Case # : 3:05-cv-00416-RV-EMT (N.D.Fla. Mar. 20, 2006), plaintiff requested transfer of the case to the United States Court of Federal Claims on March 30, 2006. Plaintiffs Consent Motion to Transfer Case to the United States Court of Federal Claims, Phillips v. Dominguez, Case #: 3:05-cv-00416-RV-EMT (N.D.Fla. Mar. 30, 2006). The District Court issued a Referral and Order transferring the case to this court. Referral and Order, Phillips v. Dominguez, Case #: 3:05-cv-00416-RV-EMT (N.D.Fla. Apr. 4, 2006)

Upon receipt of the case by this court, defendant again moved to dismiss plaintiffs claim for lack of jurisdiction. Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs Complaint (Mot.Dismiss), Nov. 3, 2006, 1. A copy of the Agreement between plaintiff and defendant and other documents relevant to plaintiffs claim (letter of reassignment, findings of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) oflfi-' cer review and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) review) are included in the Appendix to Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss. Appendix to Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss (App. Mot. Dismiss or appendix), Nov. 3, 2006, passim.1 Plaintiff had the op[515]*515portunity to dispute the facts asserted by defendant based on documents in the appendix and the authenticity of the Agreement and other documents in the appendix but did not do so. See Plaintiff’s Brief in Opposition to Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss (Pl.’s Br. Opp’n), Nov. 29, 2007, passim; Am. Compl., passim. Plaintiffs Brief in Opposition to Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss merely requested leave to amend the complaint in the event the court found it lacked jurisdiction to hear’ the case. Pl.’s Br. Opp’n, 5-7. This court issued an Order granting plaintiffs request for leave to file an amended complaint to cure deficiencies in the original complaint. Order, Feb. 8, 2007, 1. Plaintiff filed his Amended Complaint March 1, 2007. Am. Compl. 1.

Now before this court is Defendant’s Renewed Motion to Dismiss in response to plaintiffs Amended Complaint. Defendant’s Renewed Motion to Dismiss (Renewed Mot. Dismiss), April 18, 2007; see Am. Compl. Defendant moves to dismiss plaintiffs Amended Complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1) of the Rules of the Court of Federal Claims (RCFC) and, alternatively, for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted pursuant to RCFC 12(b)(6). Renewed Mot. Dismiss 1. Defendant continues to rely on the materials contained in the Appendix to Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss filed November 3, 2006. Renewed Mot. Dismiss 1. Defendant also relies on the statement of facts contained in Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss filed November 3, 2006 by incorporating it into Defendant’s Renewed Motion to Dismiss filed April 18, 2007. Renewed Mot. Dismiss 1; see Mot. Dismiss 2-5. The responsive briefing comprises Plaintiffs Brief in Opposition to Defendant’s Renewed Motion to Dismiss (Pl.’s Renewed Br. Opp’n), filed May 9, 2007, and Defendant’s Reply to Plaintiffs Response to Defendant’s Renewed Motion to Dismiss, filed May 25, 2007. For the following reasons, the court finds that it lacks jurisdiction of this case and ORDERS RE-TRANSFER of the case to the District Court for the Northern District of Florida.

B. The Settlement Agreement

Plaintiff and the United States, acting through the Air Force (Agency or government or defendant), entered into an Agreement on March 4, 2004 to resolve an EEO complaint alleging gender discrimination. Am. Compl. 2. At the time the Agreement was entered into, plaintiff was employed as a GS-855-12 electrical engineer in the Air Armament Center (AAC), Range Instrumentation Systems Program Office (RISPO), Foreign Military Sales (FMS) Branch.2 Mot. Dismiss 2; Am. Compl. 2; App. Mot. Dismiss 14. In exchange for the withdrawal of plaintiffs EEO complaint, the Agency agreed to: reassign plaintiffs supervisor out of AAC/ YBR/FMS within 60 days, submit plaintiff for a quality step increase within 60 days, research the viability of tuition assistance for an MBA degree, look for reassignment for plaintiff to another position out of YBR with career advancement potential, and keep plaintiff apprised of the progress at least monthly. App. Mot. Dismiss 1; Am. Compl. 2. The Agreement also included procedures to be followed in the event that plaintiff believed there was a breach and referenced the relevant federal regulations (29 C.F.R. § 1614.504 (2003)). App. Mot. Dismiss 2.

[516]*516Plaintiff was reassigned to a different GS-855-12 engineering position in another division in the AAC, Directorate of Engineering (EN), in the YV branch on April 19, 2004.3 Renewed Mot. Dismiss 2. Plaintiff agreed to be reassigned to the new position. Am. Compl. 2. Plaintiff alleges that his reassignment to the new position violated the Agreement in two ways. First, plaintiff alleges that the reassignment breached the agreement because the new position has no career advancement potential. Id. at 3. Second, plaintiff alleges that the reassignment breached the Agreement because the Agency fraudulently advised him that his old position was being abolished. Id. at 2-3.

On September 27, 2004, the Agency advertised a vacancy in plaintiffs former YBR division for a GS-801-13 Systems Development Engineer. See App. Mot. Dismiss 5. Plaintiff alleges that the advertised position was plaintiffs previous position in the YBR division upgraded to the GS-13 level. Am. Compl. 3; App. Mot. Dismiss 15. Plaintiff applied for but was not hired for the position. Am. Compl. 3. Plaintiff was included on the certificate of eligible candidates for the GS-13 position, but the Agency elected not to select any of the candidates listed as eligible on the certificate.4 App. Mot. Dismiss 5. Plaintiff states that a lateral transfer of personnel rather than the promotion of one of the eligible candidates on the list was used to fill the vacancy. See Am. Compl. 3; App. Mot. Dismiss 6.

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Bluebook (online)
77 Fed. Cl. 513, 2007 U.S. Claims LEXIS 234, 2007 WL 2172772, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/phillips-v-united-states-uscfc-2007.