Redding v. Sun Printing Inc
Filing
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ORDER AND OPINION adopting 28 Report and Recommendation. The Court hereby REMANDS this action to the Court of Common Pleas of Orangeburg County, South Carolina for further proceedings. Signed by Honorable J Michelle Childs on 1/16/2015. (mbro, )
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF SOUTH CAROLINA
ORANGEBURG DIVISION
Angelo Redding,
)
)
Plaintiff,
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v.
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)
Sun Printing Inc.,
)
)
Defendant.
)
____________________________________)
Civil Action No. 5:14-cv-00120-JMC
ORDER AND OPINION
Plaintiff Angelo Redding (“Plaintiff”) filed this action against Defendant Sun Printing
Inc. (“Defendant”), alleging state law claims for negligence and wrongful termination in
violation of public policy and an implied contract. (ECF No. 1-1.)
This matter is before the court on Defendant’s Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings
pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(c) (“Rule 12(c) motion”) on the basis that Plaintiff’s claims are
barred by the applicable statute of limitations. (ECF No. 9.) In accordance with 28 U.S.C. §
636(b) and Local Rule 73.02(B)(2)(g) D.S.C., the matter was referred to United States
Magistrate Judge Paige J. Gossett for pretrial handling. On September 16, 2014, the Magistrate
Judge issued a Report and Recommendation in which she recommended that the court remand
the case to state court because the court lacks subject matter jurisdiction over the Complaint.
(ECF No. 28.) Defendant filed Objections to the Report and Recommendation asserting that the
court should maintain jurisdiction over the action and grant its Rule 12(c) motion. (ECF No. 30.)
For the reasons set forth below, the court REMANDS the case to the County of Orangeburg
(South Carolina) Court of Common Pleas.
I.
RELEVANT BACKGROUND TO THE PENDING MOTION
Plaintiff alleges that he was employed by Defendant until his termination on August 20,
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2010. (ECF No. 1-1 at 3 ¶ 4, 4 ¶ 5.) On August 20, 2013, Plaintiff commenced the instant action
against Defendant in the Orangeburg County (South Carolina) Court of Common Pleas, alleging
claims for negligence and wrongful termination in violation of public policy and an implied
contract. (ECF No. 1-1 at 3–6.) On January 15, 2014, Defendant removed the matter to this
court on the basis of federal question jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1441. (ECF
No. 1.) Specifically, Defendant asserted removal was appropriate for the following reasons:
The Complaint in the instant action asserts federal questions over which this court
has original jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1331, and the action is one which may
be removed to this court by the defendant under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1441 and 1446 and
pursuant to the artful pleading doctrine. McKnight v. Surgical Associates of
Myrtle Beach, LLC, 2011 WL 5869800, at *2 (D.S.C. Nov. 18, 2011) (“The artful
pleading doctrine permits the court to examine whether a plaintiff has attempted
to avoid removal jurisdiction by ‘artfully’ casting essentially federal law claims as
state law claims.”). “The artful pleading doctrine has . . . been applied . . . where
plaintiff first files a lawsuit alleging federal claims and then, after dismissal, seeks
to recast those claims under state law . . .” Cheshire v. Coca-Cola Bottling
Affiliated, Inc., 758 F. Supp. 1098, 1100-01 (D.S.C. 1990) (citing Federated
Dep’t Stores v. Moitie, 452 U.S. 394, 398 n.2 (1981)). That is precisely what
Plaintiff has done here.
Plaintiff, whose original Title VII claim is now barred by the 90-day statute of
limitations established in 42 U.S.C. § 2000e–5(f)(1), has simply recast that claim
as one for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy under Ludwick v. This
Minute of Carolina, Inc., 337 S.E.2d 213 (1985). However, as a matter of law, his
Ludwick claim is barred because remedies exist under both Title VII and 42 USC
§ 1981. Sellers v. South Carolina Autism Soc., Inc., 861 F.Supp.2d 692, 699
(D.S.C. 2012) (dismissing Ludwick claim with prejudice because claims of race
discrimination “may be advanced under at least two federal statutes (Title VII and
Section 1981)” (parentheses in original)). Thus Plaintiff’s wrongful discharge
claim is in fact a federal discrimination action and removal is proper.
(Id. at 2.)
In response to the allegations in the Complaint, Defendant filed a Rule 12(c) motion on
March 14, 2014, asserting primarily that this action is barred by the statute of limitations. (ECF
No. 9.) Plaintiff filed opposition to Defendant’s Rule 12(c) motion on May 4, 2014, to which
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Defendant filed a Reply in support of Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings on May 6, 2014.
(ECF Nos. 19, 21.)
II.
A.
LEGAL STANDARD
The Magistrate Judge’s Report and Recommendation
The Magistrate Judge makes only a recommendation to this court. The recommendation
has no presumptive weight. The responsibility to make a final determination remains with this
court. See Mathews v. Weber, 423 U.S. 261, 270-71 (1976). The court reviews de novo only
those portions of a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation to which specific objections
are filed, and reviews those portions which are not objected to - including those portions to
which only “general and conclusory” objections have been made - for clear error. Diamond v.
Colonial Life & Acc. Ins. Co., 416 F.3d 310, 315 (4th Cir. 2005); Camby v. Davis, 718 F.2d 198,
200 (4th Cir. 1983); Orpiano v. Johnson, 687 F.2d 44, 47 (4th Cir. 1982). The court may accept,
reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the recommendation of the magistrate judge or recommit
the matter with instructions. See 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1).
B.
Motions for Judgment on the Pleadings
Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(c) provides that “[a]fter the pleadings are closed—but early enough not
to delay trial—a party may move for judgment on the pleadings.” Id. “A fairly restrictive
standard” is applied in ruling on a Rule 12(c) motion, as “hasty or imprudent use of this
summary procedure by the courts violates the policy in favor of ensuring to each litigant a full
and fair hearing on the merits of his or her claim or defense.” Greenwich Ins. Co. v. Garrell, C/A
No. 4:11-cv-02743-RBH, 2013 WL 869602, at *4 (D.S.C. Mar. 7, 2013) (quoting 5C Charles A.
Wright and Arthur R. Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure § 1368 (3d ed. 2011)). A motion
for judgment on the pleadings is intended to test the legal sufficiency of the complaint and will
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operate to dispose of claims “where the material facts are not in dispute and a judgment on the
merits can be rendered by looking to the substance of the pleadings and any judicially noted
facts.” Cont’l Cleaning Serv. v. UPS, No. 1:98CV1056, 1999 WL 1939249, at *1 (M.D.N.C.
Apr. 13, 1999) (citing Herbert Abstract v. Touchstone Props., Inc., 914 F.2d 74, 76 (5th Cir.
1990)). “[A] motion for judgment on the pleadings is decided under the same standard as a
motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6).”1 Deutsche Bank Nat’l Trust Co. v. IRS, 361 F. App’x
527, 529 (4th Cir. 2010) (citing Independence News, Inc. v. City of Charlotte, 568 F.3d 148, 154
(4th Cir. 2009)); see also Massey v. Ojaniit, 759 F.3d 343, 353 (4th Cir. 2014) (citing Edwards v.
City of Goldsboro, 178 F.3d 231, 244 (4th Cir. 1999)); Walker v. Kelly, 589 F.3d 127, 139 (4th
Cir. 2009). “When considering a motion for judgment on the pleadings, the court may consider
the pleadings, exhibits attached thereto, documents referred to in the complaint that are central to
the plaintiff's claims, and other ‘materials in addition to the complaint if such materials are
public records or are otherwise appropriate for the taking of judicial notice.’” In re MI Windows
& Doors, Inc. Prods. Liab. Litig., MDL No. 2333, Nos. 2:12-mn-00001, 2:12-cv-02269-DCN,
2013 WL 3207423, at *2 (D.S.C. June 24, 2013) (citations omitted); cf. Philips v. Pitt Cnty.
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“The purpose of a Rule 12(b)(6) motion is to test the sufficiency of a complaint; “importantly,
[a Rule 12(b)(6) motion] does not resolve contests surrounding the facts, the merits of a claim,
or the applicability of defenses.” Edwards v. City of Goldsboro, 178 F.3d 231, 243-44 (4th Cir.
1999) (citing Republican Party v. Martin, 980 F.2d 943, 952 (4th Cir. 1992)). “The Rule
12(b)(6) motion also must be distinguished from a motion for summary judgment under Federal
Rule of Civil Procedure 56, which goes to the merits of the claim and is designed to test whether
there is a genuine issue of material fact.” Wheeling Hosp., Inc. v. Ohio Valley Health Servs. and
Educ. Corp., C/A No. 5:10CV67, 2010 WL 4977987, at *4 (N.D. W. Va. Dec. 2, 2010) (citing
5B Charles A. Wright and Arthur R. Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure § 1356 (3d ed.
1998)). The key difference between a Rule 12(b)(6) motion and a Rule 12(c) motion is “that on
a 12(c) motion, the court is to consider the answer as well as the complaint.” Fitchett v. Cnty. of
Horry, S.C., C/A No. 4:10-cv-1648-TLW-TER, 2011 WL 4435756, at *3 (D.S.C. Aug. 10, 2011)
(quoting Cont’l Cleaning Serv., 1999 WL 1939249, at *1); see also A.S. Abell Co. v. Balt.
Typographical Union No. 12, 338 F.2d 190, 193 (4th Cir. 1964). However, the contents of the
Answer are not at issue because Defendant has not yet answered the Complaint in this matter.
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Mem’l Hosp., 572 F.3d 176, 180 (4th Cir. 2009) (“In reviewing a Rule 12(b)(6) dismissal, we
may properly take judicial notice of matters of public record. We may also consider documents
attached to the complaint, as well as those attached to the motion to dismiss, so long as they are
integral to the complaint and authentic.”) (citations omitted).
In order to survive a motion for judgment on the pleadings, the complaint must contain
sufficient facts “to raise a right to relief above the speculative level” and “state a claim to relief
that is plausible on its face.” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555, 570 (2007); see
also Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 679 (2009). “A claim has facial plausibility when the
plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the
defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678 (citing Twombly, 550
U.S. at 556). In reviewing the complaint, the court accepts all well-pleaded allegations as true
and construes the facts and reasonable inferences derived therefrom in the light most favorable to
the plaintiff. Venkatraman v. REI Sys., Inc., 417 F.3d 418, 420 (4th Cir. 2005). However, the
court is not required to accept the legal conclusions the plaintiff sets forth in the complaint.
Edwards, 178 F.3d at 244. “When there are well-pleaded factual allegations, a court should
assume their veracity and then determine whether they plausibly give rise to an entitlement to
relief.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 664. A well-pleaded complaint may proceed even if it appears “that a
recovery is very remote and unlikely.” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 556 (quoting Scheuer v. Rhodes,
416 U.S. 232, 236 (1974)).
C.
Removal Based on Federal Question Jurisdiction and Remand
The party seeking to remove a case from state to federal court bears the burden of
demonstrating that jurisdiction is proper at the time the petition for removal is filed. Caterpillar
Inc. v. Lewis, 519 U.S. 61, 73 (1996). If federal jurisdiction is doubtful, remand is necessary.
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Mulcahey v. Columbia Organic Chems. Co., 29 F.3d 148, 151 (4th Cir. 1994); see Marshall v.
Manville Sales Corp., 6 F.3d 229, 232 (4th Cir. 1993) (noting Congress’s “clear intention to
restrict removal and to resolve all doubts about the propriety of removal in favor of retained state
court jurisdiction”). The right to remove a case from state to federal court derives solely from 28
U.S.C. § 1441, which provides that “a civil action brought in a state court of which the district
courts of the United States have original jurisdiction, may be removed by the defendant or the
defendants, to the district court of the United States for the district and division embracing the
place where such action is pending.” Id. at § 1441(a). Moreover, in a case that does not contain
an allegation of diversity of citizenship between the parties, the propriety of removal is based on
a district court’s “original jurisdiction of all civil actions arising under the Constitution, laws, or
treaties of the United States.” 28 U.S.C. § 1331.
In determining whether an action presents a federal question under 28 U.S.C. § 1331,
courts look to the allegations in a plaintiff’s well-pleaded complaint to determine whether an
action “arises under” federal law or the United States Constitution. Franchise Tax Bd. v. Constr.
Laborers Vacation Trust, 463 U.S. 1, 9–10 (1983). In examining the complaint, a court must
first discern whether federal or state law creates the cause of action. Most of the cases brought
under federal question jurisdiction “are those in which federal law creates the cause of action.”
Merrell Dow Pharm., Inc. v. Thompson, 478 U.S. 804, 809 (1986). In cases where federal law
creates the cause of action, the courts of the United States unquestionably have federal subject
matter jurisdiction. Id. If, however, state law creates the cause of action, federal question
jurisdiction depends on whether the plaintiff's “well-pleaded complaint establishes . . . that the
plaintiff’s right to relief necessarily depends on resolution of a substantial question of federal
law, in that federal law is a necessary element of one of the well-pleaded . . . claims.” Pinney v.
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Nokia, Inc., 402 F.3d 430, 442 (4th Cir. 2005) (quoting Christianson v. Colt. Indus. Operating
Corp., 486 U.S. 800, 808 (1988)).
Under the substantial federal question doctrine, “a defendant seeking to remove a case in
which state law creates the plaintiff’s cause of action must establish two elements: (1) that the
plaintiff’s right to relief necessarily depends on a question of federal law, and (2) that the
question of federal law is substantial.” Pinney, 402 F.3d at 442 (quoting Dixon v. Coburg Dairy,
Inc., 369 F.3d 811, 816 (4th Cir. 2004)). If the defendant fails to establish either of these
elements, the claim does not arise under federal law pursuant to the substantial federal question
doctrine, and removal cannot be justified under this doctrine. Id. A plaintiff’s right to relief
necessarily depends on a question of federal law when “it appears that some . . . disputed
question of federal law is a necessary element of one of the well-pleaded state claims.” Id.
(quoting Franchise Tax Bd., 463 U.S. at 13). If a plaintiff can establish, without the resolution of
an issue of federal law, all of the essential elements of his state law claim, then the claim does
not necessarily depend on a question of federal law. See id. Thus, a claim supported by
alternative theories in the complaint may not form the basis for federal jurisdiction unless federal
law is essential to each of those theories. Christianson, 486 U.S. at 810. Mere connection
between a claim and a federal regulatory regime is an insufficient basis for federal jurisdiction.
Pinney, 402 F.3d at 448 (discounting defendant’s argument that the substantial-federal-question
test could be met by a “sufficient connection” between “plaintiff’s claim for relief and a federal
regulatory scheme”).
III.
A.
ANALYSIS
The Report and Recommendation
In the Report and Recommendation, the Magistrate Judge observed that Plaintiff could
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avoid federal jurisdiction by exclusively relying on state law and did so in this case by not
referring in the Complaint “to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act or any other federal statute; nor
does he identify any other federal law constituting an essential element of his claims.” (ECF No.
28 at 3.) The Magistrate Judge further observed that Defendant’s reliance on the “artful pleading
doctrine” to remove the matter was inappropriate because Plaintiff’s Complaint only alleged
state claims thereby precluding removal on the basis of federal question jurisdiction. (Id. at 3–4.)
As a result of the foregoing, the Magistrate Judge determined that the court did not have subject
matter jurisdiction over the Complaint and recommended that the court remand the case to state
court without adjudicating Defendant’s Rule 12(c) motion. (Id. at 5.)
B.
Defendant’s Objections
Defendant objects to the Magistrate Judge’s recommendation of remand asserting that
Plaintiff’s state law claims are “foreclosed by the fact he had an existing remedy under Title VII
- - a claim which this court previously dismissed.”2 (ECF No. 30 at 1.) In this regard, Defendant
asserts that Plaintiff’s claims for negligence and wrongful termination in violation of public
policy and an implied contract are not alternative claims, but claims that are preempted by Title
VII. (Id. at 1–4 (citing, e.g., Amason v. PK Mgmt., LLC, C/A No. 3:10-1752-MJP-JRM, 2011
WL 1100211, at *5 (D.S.C. Mar. 1, 2011) (plaintiff “may not pursue a claim for wrongful
termination in violation of public policy based on an alleged Title VII violation because in South
Carolina a ‘public policy’ claim can only be maintained in the absence of a statutory remedy”);
Boyd v. O’Neill, 273 F. Supp. 2d 92, 96 (D.D.C. 2003) (“When, as here, the victim of a
discriminatory act [does not] allege [ ] a harm apart from discrimination, Title VII . . .
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Plaintiff previously initiated a lawsuit in this court asserting Title VII claims. (See ECF No. 1-1
(C/A No. 5:12-cv-02113-JMC).) This action was dismissed for failure to timely and properly
effect service of process pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(5) and 4(m). See Redding v. Sun
Printing Inc., C/A No. 5:12-cv-02113-JMC, 2013 WL 2149685, at *3 (D.S.C. May 16, 2013).
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preclude[s] her from suing under a common law tort theory to remedy that [same] injury.”);
McGee v. D.C., 646 F. Supp. 2d 115, 122 (D.D.C. 2009) (“Because the contract claims are based
on the same facts, legal duties and injuries that underlie the plaintiff's Title VII claims, the
plaintiff's contract claims duplicate his Title VII claims and would be subject to dismissal.”)).)
Therefore, Defendant argues that the court should maintain jurisdiction over the action and grant
its Rule 12(c) motion.
C.
The Court’s Review
In its submissions to the court, Defendant argues that the artful pleading doctrine allows
the court to maintain subject matter jurisdiction over Plaintiff’s claims even without him having
pleaded a federal claim. (See, e.g., ECF Nos. 1 at 2, 30 at 1.) Defendant further argues that
Plaintiff pleaded state law claims for negligence and wrongful termination in violation of public
policy and an implied contract just to avoid federal jurisdiction by not pleading a violation of
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e–2000e-17. As a result of the
foregoing, Defendant argues that Plaintiff has failed to present alternative state law claims that
are “not preempted by Title VII.” (ECF No. 30 at 1.)
Upon review, the court cannot agree with Defendant that federal subject matter
jurisdiction exists over this action because Plaintiff’s state law claims are masquerading as
federal law claims. In this regard, the court finds that Plaintiff’s claims fall outside the purview
of the artful pleading doctrine because federal causes of action under Title VII do not completely
preempt state law. See Rivet v. Regions Bank of La., 522 U.S. 470, 475 (1998) (“The artful
pleading doctrine allows removal where federal law completely preempts a plaintiff's state-law
claim.”); Alexander v. Gardner-Denver Co., 415 U.S. 36, 48-49 (1974) (“[T]he legislative
history of Title VII manifests a congressional intent to allow an individual to pursue
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independently his rights under both Title VII and other applicable state and federal statutes. The
clear inference is that Title VII was intended to supplement, rather that supplant, existing laws
and institutions regarding employment.”); see also Caterpillar Inc. v. Williams, 482 U.S. 386,
393 (1987) (“Once an area of state law has been completely pre-empted, any claim purportedly
based on that pre-empted state law is considered, from its inception, a federal claim, and
therefore arises under federal law.”). Therefore, since Title VII does not completely preempt
state law, the artful pleading doctrine does not permit the court to assume the existence of a
federal question. Moreover, since Plaintiff has not alleged any other claim or right arising under
the Constitution, treaties or laws of the United States, the court agrees with the Magistrate Judge
that the matter must be remanded to state court because the court lacks subject matter
jurisdiction.3 Gully v. First Nat’l Bank, 299 U.S. 109, 112 (1936) (“right or immunity created by
the Constitution or laws of the United States must be an element, and an essential one, of the
plaintiff's cause of action”).
IV.
CONCLUSION
For the reasons set forth above, the court hereby REMANDS this action to the Court of
Common Pleas of Orangeburg County, South Carolina for further proceedings. The court adopts
the Magistrate Judge’s Report and Recommendation and incorporates it herein by reference.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
United States District Judge
January 16, 2015
Columbia, South Carolina
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Neither party has alleged that the court has subject matter jurisdiction based on the diversity of
citizenship between the parties.
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