OVERBY v. GATES

Filing 30

ORDER granting 26 Motion for Leave to File; denying 19 Motion for Summary Judgment. For the reasons set forth in this order, it is ORDERED that Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED, given that material questions of fact exist a s to whether the plaintiff's assigned responsibilities were essential functions of her job and whether the plaintiff was provided with reasonable accommodations throughout her employment. It is further ORDERED that given the plaintiff's ora l representation that she is voluntarily dismissing her race-based theory of discrimination, any claim based on the theory of racial discrimination is hereby DISMISSED. It is further ORDERED that the parties shall appear before this Court for a pretr ial conference in the Court's chambers on the sixth floor of the William B. Bryant Annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse, 333 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001. Signed by Judge Reggie B. Walton on 07/19/10. (lcrbw2)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA _______________________________________ ) RACHELLE OVERBY, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Civil Action No. 07-2038 (RBW) ) ROBERT GATES, SECRETARY, ) DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, ) ) Defendant. ) _______________________________________) ORDER The parties appeared before the Court on July 15, 2010, for a hearing on the defendant's motion for summary judgment, which the plaintiff opposed. 1 Upon consideration of the parties' oral representations and their written filings, and for the reasons expressed orally by the Court from the bench at the conclusion of the motion hearing, it is hereby ORDERED that Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment is DENIED, given that material questions of fact exist as to whether the plaintiff's assigned responsibilities were essential functions of her job and whether the plaintiff was provided with reasonable accommodations throughout her employment. It is further

The Court considered the following submissions in deciding the motion: Memorandum of Points and Authorities in Support of Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment; Defendant's Statement of Undisputed Material Facts; Plaintiff's Opposition to Summary Judgment; Plaintiff's Responses to Defendant's Statement of Material Facts; and Defendant's Reply to Plaintiff's Opposition to Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment. The Court also considered the plaintiff's sur-reply, and in so doing granted the Plaintiff's Motion for Leave to File a Surreply in Opposition to Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment, which the defendant opposed, see Defendant's Opposition to Plaintiff's Motion for Leave to File Sur-Reply; see also Plaintiff's Reply in Support of Motion for Leave to File Sur-reply in Opposition to Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment.

1

ORDERED that given the plaintiff's oral representation that she is voluntarily dismissing her race-based theory of discrimination, any claim based on the theory of racial discrimination is hereby DISMISSED. 2 It is further ORDERED that the parties shall appear before this Court for a pretrial conference 3 in the Court's chambers on the sixth floor of the William B. Bryant Annex to the E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse, 333 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001. SO ORDERED this 19th day of July, 2010. _______/s/________________ REGGIE B. WALTON United States District Judge

2

The two remaining claims in this action arise from allegations of intentional discrimination based on the plaintiff's disability of deafness and the defendant's failure to accommodate the plaintiff's disability of deafness. A separate Order addressing the pretrial conference procedures will be issued.

3