TERRY A. DOUGHTY, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE.
Plaintiff Joe W. Aguillard ("Aguillard") brought this lawsuit against Louisiana College ("LC"), under the provisions of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e, as amended ("Title VII"). Aguillard alleges that LC discriminated against him, in part, on the grounds of his religious beliefs. Aguillard further alleges that LC retaliated against him for engaging in protected activities and for opposing LC's unlawful discrimination and actions.
Pending before the Court is a Motion for Partial Summary Judgment filed by LC [Doc. No. 21] contending solely that LC is entitled to summary judgment dismissing Aguillard's claims of religious discrimination and religious retaliation. Aguillard has filed an Opposition [Doc. No. 29]. For the following reasons, the Motion for Partial Summary Judgment is
Aguillard served as President of LC from January of 2005 to July of 2014. He suffered a major heart attack in March of 2011 and underwent quadruple by-pass surgery. In January of 2014, he was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Aguillard contends that, as a result of his poor health, he and LC entered into a written employment agreement effective April 15, 2014, pursuant to which he became "President Emeritus" of LC and a fully tenured member of the Faculty at LC. Dr. Richard B. Brewer ("Brewer") became President of LC on April 7, 2015, and continues to serve in that capacity.
On May 3, 2015, Aguillard filed a "fear of workplace violence" complaint with LC,
Aguillard alleges that after he filed his "fear of workplace violence" complaint, Brewer attempted to force him to resign his employment with LC, isolated him, did not allow him to participate in the usual and customary faculty functions, and refused to communicate with him with respect to his duties and responsibilities under the Employment Agreement.
On September 28, 2015, Aguillard met with Don Benton Connor ("Connor"), an investigator hired by Brewer, who Brewer said "speaks for me". [Doc. No. 1, p. 5] Connor, who "appeared" to be armed with a hand gun, "represented" he was in law enforcement, stated "this is a Catholic thing," and demanded Aguillard immediately resign his position at LC "because of religious issues." [Doc. No. 1, p. 5]. Aguillard alleges Connor followed him to his truck and physically took possession of his computers, one of which was Aguillard's personal property and the other of which had been issued to him by LC, slamming the top of one of the computers on Aguillard's hand in the process. Aguillard had personal and confidential information stored in both computers, including e-mail communications with his attorneys, financial information, and medical records. Both computers were password protected. Aguillard alleges that LC "hacked" both computers and unlawfully and illegally obtained confidential information. Aguillard was hospitalized for three weeks for treatment and observation, which he alleges was for treatment of acute PTSD symptoms and the high risk of a second heart attack and/or stroke resulting from his confrontation with Connor.
Aguillard further contends that after his release from the hospital, Brewer continued to have him followed and stalked. Aguillard asserts that Brewer fired another faculty member, Dr. Carmacia Smith-Ross, after she refused to give a false statement to the effect that Aguillard was too ill to work, that he had not been teaching his classes appropriately, that he had not attended meetings with her as required, and that because of his disabilities (coronary artery disease and PTSD), Aguillard could not perform his job duties and responsibilities.
By letter dated January 22, 2016, Dr. Cheryl Clark, Acting Vice-President and Dean of Academic Affairs, notified Aguillard that LC considered his employment to be "at will" and that LC was entitled to dismiss him at any time and for any reason and was not obligated to show cause for his dismissal.
By email dated January 29, 2016, Brewer notified Aguillard that he was placing Aguillard on administrative leave, relieving him of all of his duties and responsibilities as "President Emeritus," and re-assigning all of Aguillard's classes.
On February 9, 2016, Aguillard filed a "whistleblower complaint" with LC's Board of Trustees reporting that Brewer had retaliated against him for engaging in protected activities and for opposing LC's unlawful discrimination and actions. On February 17, 2016, LC changed the locks on Aguillard's office, denying him access to his office and his property stored in his office.
At Aguillard's request, the Faculty Affairs Advisory Committee conducted a hearing on February 23, 2016. The Committee recommended that Aguillard be dismissed from his employment. By letter
Aguillard filed a charge of discrimination with the EEOC and the Louisiana Commission on Human Rights on or about April 1, 2016, alleging that LC had discriminated against him because of his disability, his religion (Southern Baptist), and in retaliation for opposing illegal practices in violation of the American With Disabilities Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101-12213 ("ADA") and Title VII. He stated in his claim that he believed that his opposition to Calvinistic views contributed to his discharge. He filed another charge of retaliation/discrimination with the EEOC on July 8, 2016, setting forth more fully his religious-beliefs conflict with Brewer, and explaining Brewer is a Calvinist, whereas he is not a Calvinist. The EEOC issued a "Right to Sue" letter dated September 28, 2017.
Aguillard asserts that LC's alleged grounds for terminating him as President Emeritus and as a fully tenured faculty member were mere pretext and that LC retaliated against him for his attempt to protect his employment rights from unlawful discrimination on the grounds of his religious beliefs, his disability, his age, and his opposition to LC's discriminatory practices.
LC asserts in its motion for partial summary judgment that Aguillard's claims for religious discrimination and religious retaliation should be dismissed, with prejudice, at his costs, inasmuch as religious organizations or religious educational institutions, such as LC, are exempt from Title VII's discrimination and retaliation provisions.
The motion is fully briefed, and the Court is prepared to rule.
Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(a), "[a] party may move for summary judgment, identifying each claim or defense — or the part of each claim or defense — on which summary judgment is sought. The court shall grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." The moving party bears the initial burden of informing the court of the basis for its motion by identifying portions of the record which highlight the absence of genuine issues of material fact. Topalian v. Ehrman, 954 F.2d 1125, 1132 (5th Cir. 1992); see also Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1) ("A party asserting that a fact cannot be ... disputed must support the assertion by ... citing to particular parts of materials in the record ...). A fact is "material" if proof of its existence or nonexistence would affect the outcome of the lawsuit under applicable law in the case. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). A dispute about a material fact is "genuine" if the evidence is such that a reasonable fact finder could render a verdict for the nonmoving party. Id.
If the moving party can meet the initial burden, the burden then shifts to the nonmoving party to establish the existence of a genuine issue of material fact for trial. Norman v. Apache Corp., 19 F.3d 1017, 1023 (5th Cir. 1994). In evaluating the evidence tendered by the parties, the Court must accept the evidence of the nonmovant as credible and draw all justifiable inferences in its favor. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505. However, "a party cannot defeat summary judgment
Aguillard asserts religious discrimination and retaliation claims under Title VII.
Title 42 United States Code, Section 2000e-2(a)(1) addresses discrimination claims and provides:
42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a)(1).
Title 42 United States Code, Section 2000e-3(a) addresses retaliation claims and provides, in pertinent part:
42 U.S.C. § 2000e-3(a)
However, Title VII has certain exemptions applicable to religious organizations and educational institutions. Title 42 United States Code, Section 2000e-1(a) provides:
42 U.S.C. § 2000e-1(a)
In addition, Title 42 United States Code, Section 2000e-2(e)(2) provides, in pertinent part:
42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(e)(2)
LC moves for partial summary judgment, contending these exemptions apply and bar Aguillard's Title VII religious discrimination and retaliation claims. Aguillard contends that the exemptions should be analyzed under the ministerial exception and ecclesiastical abstention doctrine.
The Court finds, for the following reasons, the exemptions apply and bar Aguillard's religious discrimination and retaliation claims.
In Corporation of Presiding Bishop of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. Amos, 483 U.S. 327, 107 S.Ct. 2862, 97 L.Ed.2d 273 (1987), the Supreme Court said, "Section 702 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ... 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-1, exempts
Id., at 339, 107 S.Ct. 2862.
The preclusive effect of § 2000e-1(a) was addressed by the Fifth Circuit in EEOC v. Mississippi College, 626 F.2d 477 (5th Cir. 1980), cert. denied, 453 U.S. 912, 101 S.Ct. 3143, 69 L.Ed.2d 994 (1981). There, the EEOC sought to enforce an administrative subpoena issued to a Baptist college in relation to alleged discrimination in hiring. Id. at 478-480. In ruling on Mississippi College's exemption defense, the Court said:
Id. at 484, 488, 489.
The Sixth Circuit has also considered this exemption. In Hall v. Baptist Memorial Health Care Corp., 215 F.3d 618 (6th Cir. 2000), that Circuit held a "religious educational institution" — having a direct relationship with the Baptist church — was entitled to Title VII exemption from a college employee's religious discrimination claims. Id. at 624-625. There, claiming a violation of Title VII, the plaintiff alleged her former employer, Baptist Memorial College of Health Sciences, had "unlawfully terminated her employment based on her religion." Id. at 621. The Court, as a preface to its quotation of the § 2000e-1(a) exemption, said:
Id. at 623. And, prior to quoting § 2000e-2(e)(2), the Sixth Circuit further noted, "[a]nother, more specific exemption applies only to religious educational organizations..." Id. at 624. In recognition of these statutes, the Court found:
Id. at 625. The Sixth Circuit concluded, "the district court did not err in determining that the College was exempt from the Title VII prohibition against discrimination based on religion." Id.
The Eleventh Circuit has held likewise. In Killinger v. Samford University, 113 F.3d 196 (11th Cir. 1997), that appellate court affirmed summary judgment dismissal of a Title VII religious discrimination claim similar to that of Aguillard. The Title VII exemption was found applicable to a Baptist university's partial dismissal of a Baptist faculty member whose religious beliefs differed from those of the school's dean.
Finally, the exemptions have been found to apply with equal force to bar retaliation claims. In disposing of and dismissing religious retaliation claims under the referenced subchapter, the court in Saeemodarae v. Mercy Health Services, 456 F.Supp.2d 1021 (N.D. Iowa 2006) examined applicable case law to find a religious retaliation action could not be maintained in light of the Title VII exemptions. As stated by the court:
(Id., 456 F.Supp.2d, at 1040-1041).
In Kennedy v. St. Joseph's Ministries, Inc., 657 F.3d 189 (4th Cir. 2011) the Fourth Circuit, after a detailed analysis of Title VII's language, in light of guiding precedent, also found religious retaliation claims were barred by the Title VII religious discrimination exemptions.
Although LC has not asserted the ministerial exception as a basis for summary judgment, Aguillard nevertheless devotes much of his opposition to arguing that his claims are not barred by the ministerial exception because he is not a minister and LC is not a church. Furthermore,
The Supreme Court has recognized a constitutionally based exception for employment of ministers. In a case under the ADA, Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, 565 U.S. 171, 132 S.Ct. 694, 181 L.Ed.2d 650 (2012), the Court held that the Religion Clauses of the First Amendment "bar the government from interfering with the decision of a religious group to fire one of its ministers." Id. at 702. The Court endorsed lower court decisions that had recognized a "ministerial exception" to laws against employment discrimination but declined to adopt a rigid formula for deciding when an employee qualifies as a minister." Id. at 707.
However, the issue before this Court is whether LC is entitled to partial summary judgment solely as to Aguillard's claims of religious discrimination and religious retaliation, pursuant to the exceptions for religious discrimination by religious organizations and schools in § 2000e-1(a) and § 2000e-2(e)(2). The issues as to whether Aguillard's claims are barred by the ministerial exception and/or by the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine are not before the Court. Therefore, Aguillard's analysis based on these exceptions is inapplicable.
The Court now turns to a review of whether LC qualifies for the exemptions. The parties dispute whether LC is a religious organization or is a religious educational institution and therefore qualifies for the § 2000e-1(a) and § 2000e-2(e)(2) exemptions.
With regard to the Title VII exemptions, the Fifth Circuit has not offered specific guidance. However, other courts have considered several factors in determining whether an entity is qualified. The Court finds persuasive an overview of relevant considerations set forth by the Federal district court for the Northern District of Iowa in Saeemodarae, supra. There, the Saeemodarae court examined appellate rulings which addressed this issue in depth:
(Id. at 1036). The Saeemodarae court then cited an earlier appellate ruling, Killinger v. Samford University, 113 F.3d 196 (11th Cir. 1997), which addressed "the qualification of an ostensibly religious university to assert the `religious organization' exemption in § 2000e-1(a), rather than the more specific `religious school' exemption in § 2000e-2(e)(2)." Id. at 1036. As noted in Saeemodarae:
Id. at 1036-1037.
To support its arguments, LC relies on the affidavit of Brewer. Brewer avers:
Additionally, LC cites the Court to a Western District of Louisiana case where its status as a religious institution of higher education was recognized. In Louisiana College v. Sebelius, 38 F.Supp.3d 766 (W.D. La. 2014), the Court traced LC's history and religious background, and stated in part:
(Id., at 771, evidence citations omitted).
As a private, non-profit religious corporation and educational institution that employs individuals of a particular religion to perform work connected with the carrying on by such corporation or educational institution of its activities, LC falls within the purview of the "religious organization" exemption provided by 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-1(a). Further, the undisputed evidence shows that LC is a college and an educational institution which is in whole or substantial part supported by a particular religion (Baptist); that LC is supported by a particular religious association (Louisiana Baptist Convention); and that LC's curriculum is directed toward the propagation of a particular religion (Baptist). As such, LC also falls within the "religious school" exemption provided by 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(e)(2).
Aguillard argues that LC does not qualify for the exemptions, but offers no evidence to raise a genuine issue of material fact for trial. Indeed, Aguillard himself acknowledged (in part) LC's status as a religious educational institution in his Complaint, which alleges "Louisiana College is a private co-educational college ... which is operated by the Louisiana Baptist Convention, its sole member." [Doc. No. 1, ¶ 2].
The Court finds that LC is both a "religious organization" under § 2000e-1(a) and a "religious school" under § 2000e-2(e)(2) and is therefore exempt from Title VII's prohibitions regarding religious discrimination and retaliation. Accordingly, LC's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment [Doc. No. 21] is
For the reasons set forth above, LC's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment [Doc. No. 21] is