1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 San Francisco Division 11 CANDIDA VILLAGOMEZ, Case No. 22-cv-00292-LB
12 Plaintiff, ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF'S 13 v. MOTION TO REMAND
14 LINCOLN LIFE ASSURANCE Re: ECF No. 9 COMPANY OF BOSTON, 15 Defendant. 16 17 INTRODUCTION 18 The plaintiff’s former employer, Document Technologies, allegedly fired her (after sixteen 19 years of employment) when she injured her hip, had surgery, and became temporarily disabled.1 20 She claimed wrongful termination based on a failure to accommodate her disability and engage in 21 the interactive process. As her employment contract required, she initiated a private arbitration 22 against Document Technologies. In this lawsuit, she sued Lincoln Life, which contracted with 23 Document Technologies to handle employee leave and placed the plaintiff on long-term disability 24 for two years, when in fact, she needed only several months to recover. This, she alleged, resulted 25 in Document Technologies terminating her. She sued Lincoln in state court for negligent 26 27 1Compl. – ECF No. 1 at 20 (¶ 18). Citations refer to material in the Electronic Case File (ECF); 1 misrepresentation, aiding and abetting a violation of California’s Fair Employment and Housing 2 Act (FEHA), violating California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act and Unfair Competition Law (UCL), 3 and intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress.2 Lincoln removed the case to federal 4 court, asserting diversity jurisdiction.3 The plaintiff moved to remand on the ground that Lincoln 5 did not establish that the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000.4 The court denies the motion 6 because Lincoln has shown by a preponderance of the evidence that the amount in controversy 7 more likely than not involves over $75,000. 8 9 STATEMENT 10 The plaintiff, who lives in San Francisco, worked as a service specialist in Document 11 Technologies’ San Francisco office making copies, handling print jobs, and delivering items to 12 clients, among other tasks.5 On April 8, 2020, Document Technologies furloughed the plaintiff due 13 to the COVID-19 pandemic and the State of California’s statewide stay-at-home order.6 On May 9, 14 2020, while on furlough, the plaintiff injured her hip and back when she was hit by a dozen 15 shopping carts at Costco. In July 2020, she had hip surgery to address her injuries. This left her 16 temporarily disabled because she could not walk, squat, lift, or sit for more than an hour and a half 17 because “when attempting to complete these functions, [she] found herself in considerable pain.”7 18 Her recovery plan was twelve weeks, but in September 2020, it was extended an additional twelve 19 weeks.8 On August 1, 2020, Document Technologies tried to “force” the plaintiff back to the office 20 at the end of the COVID-19 furlough, but the plaintiff explained to her manager that she could not 21 return yet but that her disability was temporary. “Except for a single conversation that contemplated 22 23 2 Id. – ECF No. 1 at 1. 24 3 Notice of Removal – ECF No. 1 at 3–8 (¶¶ 8–26). 25 4 Mot. – ECF No. 9. 26 5 Compl. – ECF No. 1 at 17 (¶ 1) & 18 (¶¶ 13, 15). 6 Id. at 18 (¶ 16). 27 7 Id. (¶ 18). 1 a return to work on crutches while working closely with an assistant amid the COVID-19 pandemic, 2 [Document Technologies] never discussed accommodating [the plaintiff’s] disability.”9 Instead, it 3 placed the plaintiff on leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which Document 4 Technologies calculated incorrectly as leave through September 28, 2020.10 5 During her FMLA leave, Document Technologies “connected” the plaintiff to Defendant 6 Lincoln (incorporated in Indiana with a principal place of business in Pennsylvania) to discuss her 7 protected leave and disability. As part of that process, Document Technologies told the plaintiff 8 that she “could go on long-term leave for up to four months without repercussion.”11 Lincoln 9 interviewed the plaintiff about her disability, reviewed her medical records (which showed her 10 disability and full recovery in about twelve weeks), and contacted her doctor to discuss her 11 disability and recovery horizon.12 “Working in concert with” Document Technologies, and after 12 communicating with Document Technologies “several times” in October and November 2020, 13 Lincoln placed the plaintiff on long-term disability for two years until October 2022, even though 14 her medical records showed that she would have been ready to return to work in January 2021. As 15 a result, Document Technologies terminated the plaintiff on November 9, 2020, without placing 16 her on reasonable leave, on account of her disability, and without engaging in the interactive 17 process.13 In January 2021, Lincoln removed the plaintiff from disability leave (the timeline in her 18 medical records that Lincoln and Document Technologies reviewed before placing the plaintiff on 19 a two-year disability leave).14 20 The plaintiff initiated private arbitration (as required by her employment agreement) with 21 Document Technologies.15 She sued Lincoln in state court for (1) negligent misrepresentation 22 23 9 Id. at 19 (¶ 21). 24 10 Id. (¶ 22). 25 11 Id. (¶ 24); Notice of Removal – ECF No. 1 at 4–5 (¶ 14). 26 12 Compl. – ECF No. 1 at 19–20 (¶ 26). 13 Id. at 20–21 (¶¶ 26–31). 27 14 Id. at 21 (¶ 33). 1 (claim one), (2) aiding and abetting a violation of California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act 2 (FEHA) (claim two), (3) violating California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act and Unfair Competition Law 3 (UCL) (claims three and four), and (4) intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress 4 (claims five and six).16 Her prayer for relief asks for (A) general and compensatory damages, (B) 5 special damages, (C) contractual damages, (D) emotional-distress damages, (E) punitive damages, 6 (F) statutory damages, (G) penalties under Cal. Civ. Code § 3345, (H) recovery of tangible personal 7 property, (I) costs of the lawsuit, (J) prejudgment interest, and (K) attorney’s fees and costs.17 8 Lincoln removed the case to federal court, asserting diversity jurisdiction.18 The plaintiff moved 9 to remand for failure to establish that the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000.19 Lincoln provided 10 the following additional information about the amount in controversy. Document Technologies paid 11 the plaintiff $18.95 per hour and $3,284.67 per month.20 Assuming no new employment, that is 12 $42,700.71 for thirteen months of backpay and $39,416.04 for one year of front pay.21 For the claims 13 of emotional distress, it cited jury verdicts supporting the conclusion that typical awards in 14 discrimination cases for emotional distress exceed $75,000.22 It points to the requests for punitive 15 damages and attorney’s fees, including the likelihood that fees will exceed $75,000.23 16 In the motion to remand, the plaintiff says that her mitigating efforts leave only $589.42 in 17 controversy because she received benefits from the State of California of $42,111.28, which 18 almost completely offsets the backpay.24 She elaborated at the hearing that any arbitration award is 19 an offset to her damages. 20 21 16 Compl. – ECF No. 1 at 23–32 (¶¶ 43–87). 22 17 Id. at 32 (A–K). 23 18 Notice of Removal – ECF No. 1 at 3–8 (¶¶ 8–26). 24 19 Mot. – ECF No. 9. 20 Heins Decl. – ECF No. 1-1 at 2–3 (¶ 10). 25 21 Notice of Removal – ECF No. 1 at 6 (¶¶ 21–22). 26 22 Id. at 7 (¶ 23). 27 23 Id. at 7–8 (¶¶ 24–26). 24 Villagomez Decl. – ECF No. 11 at 2 (¶ 3) (the plaintiff declares that she received benefits without 1 All parties consented to magistrate-judge jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 626.25 The court held 2 a hearing on March 24, 2021.
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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 San Francisco Division 11 CANDIDA VILLAGOMEZ, Case No. 22-cv-00292-LB
12 Plaintiff, ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF'S 13 v. MOTION TO REMAND
14 LINCOLN LIFE ASSURANCE Re: ECF No. 9 COMPANY OF BOSTON, 15 Defendant. 16 17 INTRODUCTION 18 The plaintiff’s former employer, Document Technologies, allegedly fired her (after sixteen 19 years of employment) when she injured her hip, had surgery, and became temporarily disabled.1 20 She claimed wrongful termination based on a failure to accommodate her disability and engage in 21 the interactive process. As her employment contract required, she initiated a private arbitration 22 against Document Technologies. In this lawsuit, she sued Lincoln Life, which contracted with 23 Document Technologies to handle employee leave and placed the plaintiff on long-term disability 24 for two years, when in fact, she needed only several months to recover. This, she alleged, resulted 25 in Document Technologies terminating her. She sued Lincoln in state court for negligent 26 27 1Compl. – ECF No. 1 at 20 (¶ 18). Citations refer to material in the Electronic Case File (ECF); 1 misrepresentation, aiding and abetting a violation of California’s Fair Employment and Housing 2 Act (FEHA), violating California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act and Unfair Competition Law (UCL), 3 and intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress.2 Lincoln removed the case to federal 4 court, asserting diversity jurisdiction.3 The plaintiff moved to remand on the ground that Lincoln 5 did not establish that the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000.4 The court denies the motion 6 because Lincoln has shown by a preponderance of the evidence that the amount in controversy 7 more likely than not involves over $75,000. 8 9 STATEMENT 10 The plaintiff, who lives in San Francisco, worked as a service specialist in Document 11 Technologies’ San Francisco office making copies, handling print jobs, and delivering items to 12 clients, among other tasks.5 On April 8, 2020, Document Technologies furloughed the plaintiff due 13 to the COVID-19 pandemic and the State of California’s statewide stay-at-home order.6 On May 9, 14 2020, while on furlough, the plaintiff injured her hip and back when she was hit by a dozen 15 shopping carts at Costco. In July 2020, she had hip surgery to address her injuries. This left her 16 temporarily disabled because she could not walk, squat, lift, or sit for more than an hour and a half 17 because “when attempting to complete these functions, [she] found herself in considerable pain.”7 18 Her recovery plan was twelve weeks, but in September 2020, it was extended an additional twelve 19 weeks.8 On August 1, 2020, Document Technologies tried to “force” the plaintiff back to the office 20 at the end of the COVID-19 furlough, but the plaintiff explained to her manager that she could not 21 return yet but that her disability was temporary. “Except for a single conversation that contemplated 22 23 2 Id. – ECF No. 1 at 1. 24 3 Notice of Removal – ECF No. 1 at 3–8 (¶¶ 8–26). 25 4 Mot. – ECF No. 9. 26 5 Compl. – ECF No. 1 at 17 (¶ 1) & 18 (¶¶ 13, 15). 6 Id. at 18 (¶ 16). 27 7 Id. (¶ 18). 1 a return to work on crutches while working closely with an assistant amid the COVID-19 pandemic, 2 [Document Technologies] never discussed accommodating [the plaintiff’s] disability.”9 Instead, it 3 placed the plaintiff on leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), which Document 4 Technologies calculated incorrectly as leave through September 28, 2020.10 5 During her FMLA leave, Document Technologies “connected” the plaintiff to Defendant 6 Lincoln (incorporated in Indiana with a principal place of business in Pennsylvania) to discuss her 7 protected leave and disability. As part of that process, Document Technologies told the plaintiff 8 that she “could go on long-term leave for up to four months without repercussion.”11 Lincoln 9 interviewed the plaintiff about her disability, reviewed her medical records (which showed her 10 disability and full recovery in about twelve weeks), and contacted her doctor to discuss her 11 disability and recovery horizon.12 “Working in concert with” Document Technologies, and after 12 communicating with Document Technologies “several times” in October and November 2020, 13 Lincoln placed the plaintiff on long-term disability for two years until October 2022, even though 14 her medical records showed that she would have been ready to return to work in January 2021. As 15 a result, Document Technologies terminated the plaintiff on November 9, 2020, without placing 16 her on reasonable leave, on account of her disability, and without engaging in the interactive 17 process.13 In January 2021, Lincoln removed the plaintiff from disability leave (the timeline in her 18 medical records that Lincoln and Document Technologies reviewed before placing the plaintiff on 19 a two-year disability leave).14 20 The plaintiff initiated private arbitration (as required by her employment agreement) with 21 Document Technologies.15 She sued Lincoln in state court for (1) negligent misrepresentation 22 23 9 Id. at 19 (¶ 21). 24 10 Id. (¶ 22). 25 11 Id. (¶ 24); Notice of Removal – ECF No. 1 at 4–5 (¶ 14). 26 12 Compl. – ECF No. 1 at 19–20 (¶ 26). 13 Id. at 20–21 (¶¶ 26–31). 27 14 Id. at 21 (¶ 33). 1 (claim one), (2) aiding and abetting a violation of California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act 2 (FEHA) (claim two), (3) violating California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act and Unfair Competition Law 3 (UCL) (claims three and four), and (4) intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress 4 (claims five and six).16 Her prayer for relief asks for (A) general and compensatory damages, (B) 5 special damages, (C) contractual damages, (D) emotional-distress damages, (E) punitive damages, 6 (F) statutory damages, (G) penalties under Cal. Civ. Code § 3345, (H) recovery of tangible personal 7 property, (I) costs of the lawsuit, (J) prejudgment interest, and (K) attorney’s fees and costs.17 8 Lincoln removed the case to federal court, asserting diversity jurisdiction.18 The plaintiff moved 9 to remand for failure to establish that the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000.19 Lincoln provided 10 the following additional information about the amount in controversy. Document Technologies paid 11 the plaintiff $18.95 per hour and $3,284.67 per month.20 Assuming no new employment, that is 12 $42,700.71 for thirteen months of backpay and $39,416.04 for one year of front pay.21 For the claims 13 of emotional distress, it cited jury verdicts supporting the conclusion that typical awards in 14 discrimination cases for emotional distress exceed $75,000.22 It points to the requests for punitive 15 damages and attorney’s fees, including the likelihood that fees will exceed $75,000.23 16 In the motion to remand, the plaintiff says that her mitigating efforts leave only $589.42 in 17 controversy because she received benefits from the State of California of $42,111.28, which 18 almost completely offsets the backpay.24 She elaborated at the hearing that any arbitration award is 19 an offset to her damages. 20 21 16 Compl. – ECF No. 1 at 23–32 (¶¶ 43–87). 22 17 Id. at 32 (A–K). 23 18 Notice of Removal – ECF No. 1 at 3–8 (¶¶ 8–26). 24 19 Mot. – ECF No. 9. 20 Heins Decl. – ECF No. 1-1 at 2–3 (¶ 10). 25 21 Notice of Removal – ECF No. 1 at 6 (¶¶ 21–22). 26 22 Id. at 7 (¶ 23). 27 23 Id. at 7–8 (¶¶ 24–26). 24 Villagomez Decl. – ECF No. 11 at 2 (¶ 3) (the plaintiff declares that she received benefits without 1 All parties consented to magistrate-judge jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 626.25 The court held 2 a hearing on March 24, 2021. 3 ANALYSIS 4 A state-court defendant may remove an action to federal court based on diversity jurisdiction. 5 28 U.S.C. § 1441(b). Diversity jurisdiction exists if the opposing parties are diverse, and the 6 amount in controversy exceeds $75,000, exclusive of interest and costs. 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a). The 7 issue here is whether the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000. 8 “Where, as here, it is unclear or ambiguous from the face of a state-court complaint whether 9 the requisite amount in controversy is pled, the removing defendant bears the burden of 10 establishing, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the amount in controversy exceeds the 11 jurisdictional threshold.” Urbino v. Orkin Servs. of Cal., Inc., 726 F.3d 1118, 1121–22 (9th Cir. 12 2013) (cleaned up); Arias v. Residence Inn by Marriott, 936 F.3d 920, 922 (9th Cir. 2019) 13 (“[W]hen a defendant’s allegations of removal jurisdiction are challenged, the defendant’s 14 showing on the amount in controversy may rely on reasonable assumptions.”). The Ninth Circuit 15 has “not addressed the types of evidence defendants may” use to satisfy this burden. Matheson v. 16 Progressive Specialty Ins. Co., 319 F.3d 1089, 1090 (9th Cir. 2003). It has, however, endorsed the 17 “practice of considering facts presented in the removal petition as well as any summary-judgment- 18 type evidence relevant to the amount in controversy at the time of removal.” Id. (cleaned up). The 19 court resolves all ambiguities in favor of remand. See Hunter v. Philip Morris USA, 582 F.3d 20 1039, 1042 (9th Cir. 2009). 21 “The amount in controversy includes claims for general and special damages (excluding costs 22 and interest), attorney[’]s fees if recoverable by statute or contract, and punitive damages if 23 recoverable as a matter of law.” J. Marymount, Inc. v. Bayer Healthcare, LLC, No. C 09-03110 24 JSW, 2009 WL 4510126, at *2 (N.D. Cal. Nov. 30, 2009) (cleaned up). 25 On this record, the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000. The court cannot conclude to a 26 legal certainty that the amount in controversy is less than the jurisdictional requirement and thus 27 1 concludes that there is diversity jurisdiction. An employment case involves back pay and front 2 || pay. There are emotional-stress damages and fees, and also punitive damages. The defendant has 3 || met its burden. (The court elaborated on these reasons at the hearing.) 4 5 CONCLUSION 6 The motion to remand is denied. This resolves ECF No. 9. 7 IT IS SO ORDERED. 3 Dated: March 25, 2022 Lidl EC 9 LAUREL BEELER 10 United States Magistrate Judge 11 12
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