Riddle v. Louisiana Power and Light Co.

654 So. 2d 698, 94 La.App. 1 Cir. 1386, 1995 La. App. LEXIS 1072, 1994 WL 792600
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 7, 1995
Docket94 CA 1386
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 654 So. 2d 698 (Riddle v. Louisiana Power and Light Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Riddle v. Louisiana Power and Light Co., 654 So. 2d 698, 94 La.App. 1 Cir. 1386, 1995 La. App. LEXIS 1072, 1994 WL 792600 (La. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

654 So.2d 698 (1995)

Stephen A. RIDDLE
v.
LOUISIANA POWER AND LIGHT COMPANY.

No. 94 CA 1386.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

April 7, 1995.
Rehearing Denied May 25, 1995.

Thomas J. Hogan, Jr., Hammond, for appellant, Stephen A. Riddle.

Michael J. Molony, Jr., New Orleans, for appellee, Louisiana Power & Light Co.

Before GONZALES, PARRO and REDMANN[1], JJ.

GONZALES, Judge.

Plaintiff, Stephen P. Riddle, began working as a meter reader for Louisiana Power & Light Company (LP & L) in 1972. He began experiencing pain in his knees in 1988 or early 1989. His condition was diagnosed as chondromalacia on January 27, 1989, and his doctor advised him to seek less strenuous work. In 1990, following surgery, Mr. Riddle returned to work at LP & L and was assigned to a temporary light duty job. LP & L assisted Mr. Riddle in applying for long-term disability benefits. Mr. Riddle was found to be eligible for long-term disability benefits, began receiving long-term disability benefits, and was then terminated as physically unable to work on October 25, 1990. Plaintiff filed suit against LP & L on October *699 24, 1991, alleging that he was a handicapped person within the meaning of the Louisiana Civil Rights for Handicapped Persons Act, La.R.S. 46:2251 et seq. Mr. Riddle alleged that LP & L had violated the law by failing or refusing to reasonably accommodate him on the basis of his handicap; discharging or otherwise discriminating against him with respect to compensation or the terms, conditions or privileges of employment; limiting, segregating or classifying him in a way that deprived him of employment opportunities; and failing or refusing to promote him, and discharging him, on the basis of a physical exam that was not directly related to the requirements of all jobs Mr. Riddle was physically able to do.

Mr. Riddle prayed for damages for loss of wages, loss of fringe benefits, and mental and emotional suffering. LP & L answered the petition, then filed a motion for summary judgment. By judgment signed April 27, 1994, the trial court granted the motion for summary judgment, and plaintiff's petition was dismissed at his cost.[2] Also on April 27, 1994, Mr. Riddle filed an appeal. Thereafter, the court signed a second judgment on May 4, 1994, granting the motion for summary judgment and dismissing Mr. Riddle's suit with prejudice, and ordering plaintiff to pay all court costs incurred by LP & L, including court reporters' charges paid for depositions. On May 12, 1994, Mr. Riddle filed a motion for appeal of the May 4, 1994 judgment.

Mr. Riddle made the following assignment of errors:

1. The trial court should not have granted the motion for summary judgment.

2. The trial court should not have awarded costs of depositions which were not used at the hearing.

THE CIVIL RIGHTS FOR HANDICAPPED PERSONS ACT

Louisiana Revised Statute 46:2253 provides in pertinent part:

(1) "Handicapped person" means any person who has an impairment which substantially limits one or more life activities or (a) has a record of such an impairment or (b) is regarded as having such an impairment.
(2) "Impairment" means retardation; any physical or physiological disorder or condition, or prior mental disorder or condition, but, at the discretion of the employer, not to include chronic alcoholism or any other form of active drug addiction; any cosmetic disfigurement; or an anatomical loss of body systems.
* * * * * *
(19) "Reasonable accommodation" means an adjustment or modification to a known physical limitation of an otherwise qualified applicant or employee which would not impose an undue hardship on the employer. This shall not require an employer to spend more for architectural modifications than that amount now allowed as a federal tax deduction. However, "reasonable accommodation" shall not be construed to impose on any private sector employer, unless otherwise required by law under any contract with a federal, state or local governmental body or subdivision, any additional costs in the hiring or the promotion of a handicapped person. Undue hardship is determined on a case by case basis taking into account the following:
(a) Employee for which accommodation is to be made.
(b) Specific disability of employee.
(c) Essential job duties of employee.
(d) Working environment.

Louisiana Revised Statute 46:2254(A) provides:

No otherwise qualified person shall, on the basis of a handicap, be subjected to discrimination in employment, by any educational facility, in any real estate transaction, or be excluded from participating in, or denied the benefits of, any program or activity which receives financial assistance from the state or any of its political subdivisions.

Louisiana Revised Statutes 46:2254(C) provides in pertinent part:

*700 An employer, labor organization, or employment agency shall not:

(1) Fail or refuse to hire, promote, or reasonably accommodate an otherwise qualified individual on the basis of a handicap when it is unrelated to the individual's ability with reasonable accommodation to perform the duties of a particular job or position.
(2) Discharge or otherwise discriminate against an otherwise qualified individual with respect to compensation or the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, on the basis of a handicap when it is unrelated to the individual's ability to perform the duties of a particular job or position.
(3) Limit, segregate or classify an otherwise qualified employee or applicant for employment in a way which deprives an individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affects the status of an employee on the basis of a handicap when it is unrelated to the individual's ability to perform the duties of a particular job or position.
(4) Fail or refuse to hire, or promote an otherwise qualified individual on the basis of physical or mental examinations or preemployment interviews that are not directly related to the requirements of the specific job, or which are not required of all employees.
(5) Discharge or take other discriminatory action against an otherwise qualified individual on the basis of physical or mental examinations or preemployment interviews that are not directly related to the requirements of the specific job or are not required of all employees.
(6) Fail or refuse to hire, or promote an otherwise qualified individual when adaptive devices or aids may need to be utilized to enable that individual, at the employee's own expense, to perform the specific requirements of the job.
(7) Discharge or take other discriminatory action against an otherwise qualified individual when adaptive devices or aids may need to be utilized to enable that individual, at the employee's own expense, to perform the specific requirements of the job.

* * * * * *

ASSIGNMENT OF ERROR NO. 1

Mr. Riddle does not dispute the fact that he is unable to perform his regular job duties as a meter reader. In this case, LP & L accommodated Mr. Riddle by placing him in a position which required only desk work for several weeks. However, this was only a temporary position which consisted of Mr.

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Bluebook (online)
654 So. 2d 698, 94 La.App. 1 Cir. 1386, 1995 La. App. LEXIS 1072, 1994 WL 792600, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/riddle-v-louisiana-power-and-light-co-lactapp-1995.