Filed: May 01, 2008
Latest Update: Feb. 21, 2020
Summary: [DO NOT PUBLISH] IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT _ FILED U.S. COURT OF APPEALS ELEVENTH CIRCUIT No. 07-14123 May 1, 2008 _ THOMAS K. KAHN CLERK D. C. Docket No. 05-02673-CV-RWS-1 JEFFERY HALL, Plaintiff-Appellant, versus GREAT-WEST HEALTHCARE, GREAT-WEST LIFE & ANNUITY INSURANCE CO., Defendants-Appellees, KRISTI HOLT, SHARON HAZELTON Defendants. _ No. 07-14124 _ D. C. Docket No. 05-02675-CV-RWS-1 LISA WILLIAMS, Plaintiff-Appellant, versus GREAT-WEST HEALTHCARE, G
Summary: [DO NOT PUBLISH] IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT _ FILED U.S. COURT OF APPEALS ELEVENTH CIRCUIT No. 07-14123 May 1, 2008 _ THOMAS K. KAHN CLERK D. C. Docket No. 05-02673-CV-RWS-1 JEFFERY HALL, Plaintiff-Appellant, versus GREAT-WEST HEALTHCARE, GREAT-WEST LIFE & ANNUITY INSURANCE CO., Defendants-Appellees, KRISTI HOLT, SHARON HAZELTON Defendants. _ No. 07-14124 _ D. C. Docket No. 05-02675-CV-RWS-1 LISA WILLIAMS, Plaintiff-Appellant, versus GREAT-WEST HEALTHCARE, GR..
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[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
________________________ FILED
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
No. 07-14123
May 1, 2008
________________________ THOMAS K. KAHN
CLERK
D. C. Docket No. 05-02673-CV-RWS-1
JEFFERY HALL,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
versus
GREAT-WEST HEALTHCARE,
GREAT-WEST LIFE & ANNUITY
INSURANCE CO.,
Defendants-Appellees,
KRISTI HOLT,
SHARON HAZELTON
Defendants.
________________________
No. 07-14124
________________________
D. C. Docket No. 05-02675-CV-RWS-1
LISA WILLIAMS,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
versus
GREAT-WEST HEALTHCARE,
GREAT-WEST LIFE & ANNUITY
INSURANCE CO.,
Defendants-Appellees,
PATTY NUZZO,
KRISTI HOLT, et al.,
Defendants.
________________________
No. 07-14125
Non-Argument Calendar
________________________
D. C. Docket No. 05-02676-CV-RWS-1
SONYA RADINA BROWN,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
versus
GREAT-WEST HEALTHCARE,
GREAT-WEST LIFE & ANNUITY INSURANCE CO.,
KRISTI HOLT,
SHARON HAZELTON,
Defendants-Appellees.
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________________________
No. 07-14126
Non-Argument Calendar
________________________
D. C. Docket No. 05-02677-CV-RWS-1
LATISHA FORBES,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
versus
GREAT-WEST HEALTHCARE,
GREAT-WEST LIFE & ANNUITY INSURANCE CO.,
Defendants-Appellees,
KRISTI HOLT,
SHARON HAZELTON,
Defendants.
________________________
Appeals from the United States District Court
for the Northern District of Georgia
_________________________
(May 1, 2008)
Before EDMONDSON, Chief Judge, PRYOR and KRAVITCH, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
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Jeffery Hall, Lisa Williams, Sonya Brown, and Latisha Forbes, current and
former employees of Great-West Healthcare, appeal summary judgments against
their complaints of employment discrimination under federal law and negligent
retention and supervision under Georgia law. The employees argue that the district
court erred in its evidentiary rulings and made impermissible findings of fact, but
the employees fail to explain why they are entitled to a reversal of the summary
judgments. We affirm.
I. BACKGROUND
A central component of the employees’ allegations of discrimination against
Great-West are paper copies of emails that contained racially derogatory language
allegedly sent by Sharon Hazelton, a manager at Great-West, to Barbara VanVoris,
an employee of Great-West. Brown discovered the paper copies on her office
chair. Thomas Akin, a computer forensics expert hired by Great West, concluded
that electronic versions of the paper copies were not sent or received over the
Great-West computer network.
A magistrate judge ruled that the paper copies of the alleged emails were
inadmissible because the paper copies were not authentic. The magistrate judge
also rejected the employees’ attempt to exclude the testimony and report of Akin.
The magistrate judge recommended that the district court grant summary
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judgments in favor of Great-West against each employee. The district court
affirmed the evidentiary rulings and adopted the recommendations of the
magistrate judge and entered summary judgments in favor of Great-West.
II. STANDARD OF REVIEW
We review a summary judgment de novo. Shuford v. Fid. Nat’l Prop. &
Cas. Ins. Co.,
508 F.3d 1337, 1341 (11th Cir. 2007). “We apply the same legal
standards that bound the district court and view all facts and reasonable inferences
in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party.”
Id.
III. DISCUSSION
The employees raise two issues on appeal. First, the employees challenge
the evidentiary rulings of the district court. Second, the employees contend that
the district court made impermissible factual findings. As to each issue, we are left
to wonder whether Great-West was entitled to summary judgment in its favor.
The employees contend that the district court erroneously excluded
evidence, erroneously permitted expert evidence, and failed to apply the doctrine
of spoilation. The employees argue that there was sufficient evidence to
authenticate the paper copies of the emails. The employees contend that the report
and testimony of Akin should have been excluded from the evidentiary record
because Akin was not qualified to provide an expert opinion and his opinion relied
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on insufficient data. The employees suggest that the copies of the emails are
entitled to a presumption of authenticity because of the spoilation doctrine.
The problem with the employees’ arguments about these evidentiary rulings
is that the employees never explain why these alleged errors by the district court
matter. The employees fail to explain whether the resolution of these evidentiary
rulings in their favor would create genuine issues of material fact or otherwise
preclude the summary judgments in favor of Great-West. Because “[a]n argument
not made is waived,” Cont’l Technical Servs. v. Rockwell Int’l Corp.,
927 F.2d
1198, 1199 (11th Cir. 1991), the employees have waived any argument that the
evidentiary rulings precluded the summary judgments in favor of Great-West.
The employees’ other bare objection is that the district court “drew
inferences and conclusions of fact against, rather than in favor of,” the employees.
The Federal Rules of Appellate Procedure require briefs of appellants to include
“citations to the authorities and parts of the record on which the appellant relies,”
Fed. R. App. P. 28(a)(9)(A), but the employees did not describe a single inference
or finding of fact made by the district court. Instead, the employees direct this
Court to arguments contained in 81 pages of four separate filings in the district
court. These arguments only incorporated by reference are waived. Four Seasons
Hotels & Resorts, B.V. v. Consorcio Barr S.A.,
377 F.3d 1164, 1167 n.4 (11th Cir.
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2004). We reject the employees attempt to “bypass the rules governing space
limitations and transfer [their] duty to make arguments to the judges of this panel.”
Id. The employees have waived any argument that the district court made
impermissible factual findings or inferences. Cont’l Technical
Servs., 927 F.2d at
1199.
IV. CONCLUSION
We AFFIRM the summary judgments in favor of Great-West.
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