Weathersby v. Jacquet

813 So. 2d 1135, 2002 WL 496560
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 3, 2002
Docket01-1567
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 813 So. 2d 1135 (Weathersby v. Jacquet) 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
Weathersby v. Jacquet, 813 So. 2d 1135, 2002 WL 496560 (La. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

813 So.2d 1135 (2002)

Byrda WEATHERSBY
v.
Steven JACQUET, et al.

No. 01-1567.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

April 3, 2002.

*1136 Louis Clayton Burgess, Attorney at Law, Lafayette, LA, for Byrda Weathersby.

John Goulding Swift, Swift & Rhoades, Lafayette, LA, for Steven Jacquet.

L. Katherine A. Theunissen, Preis, Kraft, & Roy, Lafayette, LA, for Lafayette Parish School Board.

Court composed of HENRY L. YELVERTON, SYLVIA R. COOKS and MARC T. AMY, Judges.

AMY, Judge.

The trial court granted the defendants' motions for summary judgment finding that the factual backgrounds of any timely filed allegations of sexual harassment were insufficient. The plaintiff appeals. For the following reasons, we affirm.

Factual and Procedural Background

The plaintiff, Byrda Weathersby, began employment with the Lafayette Parish School Board in November 1996. The plaintiff alleges that she was hired by Steven Jacquet to act as his clerical assistant. Ms. Weathersby contends that after she began her employment, Mr. Jacquet began sexually harassing her. She contends that this objectionable conduct consisted of, among other things, harassing phone calls, inquiries on sexual topics, inappropriate touching, and unconsensual sex. She contends *1137 that, after she reported the harassment, Mr. Jacquet refused to promote her to a higher position.

In September 1999, Ms. Weathersby filed a report with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, alleging that the harassment occurred between February 1, 1997 and June 1, 1999. In August 2000, the EEOC notified Ms. Weathersby that it declined to file suit in the matter and that she had ninety days from the date of notice in which to file suit.

Ms. Weathersby filed suit in state court on November 11, 2000, naming Mr. Jacquet and the Lafayette Parish School Board (LPSB) as defendants. State tort claims were made originally, but by amendment of the petition, the plaintiff raised federal claims related to the allegations of harassment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. LPSB filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that the majority of the allegedly inappropriate behavior occurred prior to Ms. Weathersby's transfer from Mr. Jacquet's supervision in October or November of 1997. Following that period of harassment, the next allegedly offensive conduct occurred on June 1, 1999. LPSB argued that any cause of action stemming from the pre-transfer harassment had clearly prescribed. The next conduct did not occur until 1999 and was sufficiently separated by time to not constitute a continuing tort. Furthermore, LPSB argued that Ms. Weathersby's description of the 1999 conduct was insufficient to support a claim of harassment, under either federal or state law. Even if the 1999 conduct was sufficient and timely under federal law, the LPSB argues, it did not interrupt prescription as to any state law claims. Mr. Jacquet filed a similar motion for summary judgment.

The trial court granted the motions for summary judgment, finding that the allegations of harassment that occurred while Ms. Weathersby was under Mr. Jacquet's supervision had prescribed at the time of the filing of suit, as well as at the time of the filing of the EEOC action, as the last action occurred in November 1997. Any state law cause of action related to the June 1999 allegation, the trial court determined, had also prescribed by the date suit was filed, November 17, 2000. It concluded that the filing of the EEOC complaint did not interrupt prescription as to state law claims and although it may have interrupted federal law claims, the allegations as to the June 1999 incident were not sufficient to recover under Title VII. Finally, although the court concluded that the actions complained of prior to the 1997 transfer from Mr. Jacquet's supervision may have been actionable under either state or federal law, they were not timely asserted and, following the transfer, there were no instances of objectionable actions until June 1999, and thus, the course of conduct could not be seen as continuous.

Although the plaintiff makes a number of arguments, she designates the following assignment of error:

The district court erred in its Ruling on Motion for Summary Judgment by determining the actions of Steven Jacquet on June, July and August of 1999 as described in plaintiffs affidavit and the EEOC complaint were insufficient to create a genuine issue of material fact that his conduct was part of the continuous harassment and therefore preventing plaintiffs claim from prescribing.

Discussion

With regard to summary judgment, La. Code Civ.P. art. 966 provides, in pertinent part:

A. (1) The plaintiff or defendant in the principal or any incidental action, with or without supporting affidavits, *1138 may move for a summary judgment in his favor for all or part of the relief for which he has prayed. The plaintiffs motion may be made at any time after the answer has been filed. The defendant's motion may be made at any time.
(2) The summary judgment procedure is designed to secure the just, speedy, and inexpensive determination of every action, except those disallowed by Article 969. The procedure is favored and shall be construed to accomplish these ends.
B. The motion for summary judgment and supporting affidavits shall be served at least ten days before the time specified for the hearing. For good cause, the court shall give the adverse party additional time to file a response, including opposing affidavits or depositions. The adverse party may serve opposing affidavits, and if such opposing affidavits are served, the opposing affidavits and any memorandum in support thereof shall be served pursuant to Article 1313 at least four days prior to the date of the hearing unless there are local rules of court to the contrary. The judgment sought shall be rendered forthwith if 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 material fact, and that mover is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
C. (1) After adequate discovery or after a case is set for trial, a motion which shows that there is no genuine issue as to material fact and that the mover is entitled to judgment as a matter of law shall be granted.
(2) The burden of proof remains with the movant. However, if the movant will not bear the burden of proof at trial on the matter that is before the court on the motion for summary judgment, the movant's burden on the motion does not require him to negate all essential elements of the adverse party's claim, action, or defense, but rather to point out to the court that there is an absence of factual support for one or more elements essential to the adverse party's claim, action, or defense. Thereafter, if the adverse party fails to produce factual support sufficient to establish that he will be able to satisfy his evidentiary burden of proof at trial, there is no genuine issue of material fact.

On appeal, the reviewing court considers granting or denying of a motion for summary judgment de novo, using the same criteria used by the trial court. Goins v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 01-1136 (La.11/28/01); 800 So.2d 783.

Prematurity

The plaintiff first argues that the trial court erred in granting the motion for summary judgment as adequate discovery had not been conducted. She references La.Code Civ.P. art.

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Bluebook (online)
813 So. 2d 1135, 2002 WL 496560, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/weathersby-v-jacquet-lactapp-2002.