Betty Nelson v. Peggy Holinga-Katona, et al
Filing
Filed opinion of the court by Judge Bauer. AFFIRMED. Diane P. Wood, Chief Judge; William J. Bauer, Circuit Judge and Kenneth F. Ripple, Circuit Judge. [6643756-1] [6643756] [13-1652]
Case: 13-1652
Document: 53
Filed: 02/25/2015
Pages: 3
In the
United States Court of Appeals
For the Seventh Circuit
No. 13‐1652
BETTY RUTH NELSON,
Plaintiff‐Appellant,
v.
PEGGY HOLINGA KATONA, indi‐
vidually and in her official capacity
as Lake County Auditor, et al.,
Defendants‐Appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the
Northern District of Indiana, Hammond Division.
No. 2:10‐cv‐00031‐JVB‐PRC — Joseph S. Van Bokkelen, Judge.
ARGUED FEBRUARY 13, 2015 — DECIDED FEBRUARY 25, 2015
Before WOOD, Chief Judge, and BAUER and RIPPLE, Circuit
Judges.
BAUER, Circuit Judge. Plaintiff‐Appellant, Betty Ruth Nelson
(“Nelson”), a former employee of the Lake County Auditor’s
office, brought suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Defendants‐
Appellees, Peggy Holinga Katona, individually and in her
official capacity as Lake County Auditor, and Lake County
Case: 13-1652
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Document: 53
Filed: 02/25/2015
Pages: 3
No. 13‐1652
Indiana, individually and severally (“the Appellees”). Nelson
alleged that she was unlawfully terminated from her job by the
Appellees in retaliation for her political support of Barack
Obama. After a full trial, the court entered judgment against
Nelson in accordance with the jury’s verdict. On appeal,
Nelson challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting
the jury’s verdict. Because Nelson failed to file any post‐verdict
motions—a necessary first step for our analysis of the
facts—we affirm.
The issue presented for review is whether the jury’s verdict,
rendered in favor of the Appellees, was supported by legally
sufficient evidence. It is well‐settled that this court will uphold
a jury verdict on appeal as long as it is supported by a reason‐
able basis in the record. Pickett v. Sheridan Healthcare, 610 F.3d
434, 440 (7th Cir. 2010). It is equally well‐established that a
party’s failure to comply with Rule 50(b) forecloses any
challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence on appeal. Unitherm
Food Systems, Inc. v. Swift‐Eckrich, Inc., 546 U.S. 394, 404–07
(2006); Consumer Prods. Research & Design, Inc. v. Jensen, 572
F.3d 436, 437 (7th Cir. 2009). A post‐verdict motion is necessary
because “[d]etermination of whether a new trial should be
granted or a judgment entered under Rule 50(b) calls for the
judgment in the first instance of the judge who saw and heard
the witnesses and has the feel of the case which no appellate
printed transcript can impart.” Cone v. West Virginia Pulp &
Paper Co., 330 U.S. 212, 216 (1947). Here, not only did Nelson
fail to move for a judgment as a matter of law under Rule 50(a)
at any point before the case was submitted to the jury, she did
not make any motion pursuant to Rule 50(b) or Rule 59 after
the jury returned its verdict. Nelson’s failure to file any post‐
Case: 13-1652
No. 13‐1652
Document: 53
Filed: 02/25/2015
Pages: 3
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verdict motions precludes her from challenging the sufficiency
of the evidence underlying the jury’s verdict. See Unitherm, 546
U.S. at 404. Therefore, we cannot consider Nelson’s claim on
appeal.
AFFIRMED.
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