BEAR, J.
The plaintiff, Robert J. Cassotto, appeals from the May 25, 2010 judgment of nonsuit rendered by the trial court on his amended complaint (third complaint), which alleged a cause of action for intentional infliction of emotional distress against the defendant, Timothy Thibault. The court rendered judgment after the plaintiff declined to revise his third complaint in accordance with the order of the court. On appeal, the plaintiff claims that the court "erred in holding that the individual paragraphs of the third complaint should be deleted because no one of them, alone, was `extreme and outrageous' and in refusing to consider whether they met that test when read as an entire pattern of conduct." We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
The following facts and procedural history are relevant to our resolution of the plaintiff's appeal. On December 23, 2008, the plaintiff commenced this action by service of process, alleging intentional infliction of emotional distress by the defendant, whom the plaintiff alleged to be an official in the labor union that represents both the plaintiff and the defendant (first
On May 28, 2009, the defendant filed a motion to strike the second complaint, on the ground that the plaintiff's single cause of action for intentional infliction of emotional distress as pleaded was legally insufficient. Oral argument was held on June 15, 2009. On September 2, 2009, the court issued a memorandum of decision in which it granted the defendant's motion to strike, stating that the allegations "simply cannot, as a matter of law, constitute behavior that is so outrageous and extreme as to go beyond all possible bounds of decency, and to be regarded as atrocious and utterly intolerable in a civilized community. Rather, the incidents complained of by the plaintiff are isolated, and occurred over the course of one and one-half years. Moreover, the demeaning statements made by the defendant occurred in the presence of an individual that the plaintiff did not, and still does not know, thereby detracting from the extreme and outrageous factor."
On February 26, 2010, the plaintiff chose to replead
On March 11, 2010, the defendant filed another request to revise, this time directed at the third complaint. In this request to revise, the defendant sought the deletion of the allegations that previously had been stricken by the court by virtue of its granting the defendant's motion to strike the second complaint, which now were realleged in paragraphs 4, 6 and 8 of the third complaint, arguing, inter alia, that "[b]ecause it has already been determined, as a matter of law, that [these] allegation[s] [do] not constitute extreme and outrageous conduct, [they] clearly [are] unnecessary, impertinent, immaterial and improper and must be deleted from the plaintiff's claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress." Additionally, as he had done with the first complaint, the defendant again sought to have the plaintiff state the material facts on which he was basing many of the other allegations that were realleged in this third complaint.
The plaintiff objected to each of the defendant's requests on various grounds, including that "it is proper to include the allegations of the previously stricken complaint, in addition to the new allegations, to determine whether the whole is extreme and outrageous." (Emphasis in original.) Additionally, the plaintiff objected to the defendant's request that the plaintiff set forth the material facts that support the remaining allegations on the ground that the additional material facts that the defendant was seeking were more appropriate for discovery than for the complaint. On April 23, 2010, the court overruled the plaintiff's objections without issuing a memorandum of decision.
On appeal, the plaintiff claims that the court erred "in holding that the individual paragraphs of the amended complaint should be deleted because no one of them, alone, was `extreme and outrageous' and in refusing to consider whether they met that test when read as an entire pattern of conduct." The plaintiff argues that "the court picked away most of the factual allegations at an earlier stage of pleading by holding that, because those allegations standing alone had been deemed insufficiently `extreme and outrageous' to state a claim, they could not be added to other factual claims but rather were deemed not to exist. Accordingly, the court ordered the plaintiff to remove them from his complaint by means of overruling objections to a request to revise." We conclude that the plaintiff has failed to demonstrate that the court abused its discretion.
Although the plaintiff asserts that our standard of review in this case is plenary, following our Supreme Court's decision in Fort Trumbull Conservancy, LLC v. Alves, 286 Conn. 264, 276 n. 11, 943 A.2d 420 (2008), we conclude that the standard
The judgment is affirmed.
In this opinion the other judges concurred.
"1. The plaintiff is an adult citizen of the United States who resides in Winsted, Connecticut.
"2. The defendant is an adult citizen of the United States who resides in Torrington, Connecticut.
"3. On or about January 20, 2006, the defendant, who was an official of the plaintiff's labor union, refused to file or process a meritorious grievance on behalf of the plaintiff concerning workplace violence to which the plaintiff was being subjected.
"4. On or about August 18, 2006, the defendant attempted to physically assault the plaintiff with a cart.
"5. On or about September 14, 2007, the defendant, having become Chief Steward in the plaintiff's union, maliciously refused to file or process several meritorious grievances submitted by the plaintiff.
"6. On or about September 20, 2007, the defendant again refused to accept the plaintiff's complaints and called him `a fucking liar' in the presence of others.
"7. On or about January 10, 2008, at their workplace, the defendant threatened the plaintiff and subjected him to physical intimidation.
"8. On or about March 25, 2008, the defendant publicly ridiculed the plaintiff, stating that if the plaintiff's job responsibilities were taken away from him, `at least we'll get some work done now!'
"9. The conduct of the defendant described above was extreme and outrageous and was carried out with the knowledge and intention that it would cause the plaintiff to suffer emotional distress.
"10. As a result, the plaintiff suffered severe emotional distress."
"1. The plaintiff is an adult citizen of the United States who resides in Winsted, Connecticut.
"2. The defendant is an adult citizen of the United States who resides in Torrington, Connecticut.
"3. On or about August 18, 2006, the defendant attempted to physically assault the plaintiff with a cart.
"4. On or about September 20, 2007, the defendant called the plaintiff `a fucking liar' in the presence of third persons whose identities are not presently known to the plaintiff.
"5. On or about March 25, 2008, the defendant publicly ridiculed the plaintiff in the presence of third persons whose identities are not presently known to the plaintiff, stating that if the plaintiff's job responsibilities were taken away from him, `at least we'll get some work done now!'
"6. The conduct of the defendant described above was extreme and outrageous and was carried out with the knowledge and intention that it would cause the plaintiff to suffer emotional distress.
"7. As a result, the plaintiff suffered severe emotional distress."
"1. The plaintiff is an adult citizen of the United States who resides in Winsted, Connecticut.
"2. The defendant is an adult citizen of the United States who resides in Torrington, Connecticut.
"3. On or about January 20, 2006, the defendant, who was an official of the plaintiff's labor union, refused to file or process a meritorious grievance on behalf of the plaintiff concerning workplace violence to which the plaintiff was being subjected.
"4. On or about August 18, 2006, the defendant attempted to physically assault the plaintiff with a cart.
"5. On or about September 14, 2007, the defendant, having become Chief Steward in the plaintiff's union, maliciously refused to file or process several meritorious grievances submitted by the plaintiff.
"6. On or about September 20, 2007, the defendant again refused to accept the plaintiff's complaints and called him `a fucking liar' in the presence of others.
"7. On or about January 10, 2008, at their workplace, the defendant threatened the plaintiff and subjected him to physical intimidation.
"8. On or about March 25, 2008, the defendant publicly ridiculed the plaintiff, stating that if the plaintiff's job responsibilities were taken away from him, `at least we'll get some work done now!'
"9. On or about August 1, 2008, the defendant physically assaulted the plaintiff, causing injury to the plaintiff's back, pain and fear.
"10. The conduct of the defendant described above was extreme and outrageous and was carried out with the knowledge and intention that it would cause the plaintiff to suffer emotional distress.
"11. As a result, the plaintiff suffered severe emotional distress."