Elgalad v. New York City Department Of Education
- Vernon Broderick
- 1:17-cv-04849
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Elgalad v. New York City Department of Education, Judge Broderick denied defendants’ request for a pre-motion conference about summary judgment.
The order affected Ahmed M. Elgalad and the defendants—the New York City Department of Education, Michelle Rochon, Kabeya Mbuyi, and Livingstone Hilaire—by denying the requested pre-motion conference and directing the parties to propose a briefing schedule.
What happened
Elgalad v. New York City Department of Education concerns a physical education teacher’s claims that the New York City Department of Education and individual defendants discriminated against him because he is Muslim and white and retaliated against him. The remaining claims included race discrimination, retaliation, and municipal liability under federal, state, and city laws.
The defendants asked Judge Broderick for a conference before filing a proposed motion for summary judgment, which would ask the court to decide the remaining claims without a trial. They argued that the plaintiff lacked evidence of discrimination or retaliation and that one federal claim failed because the individual defendant was a state actor.
Judge Broderick denied the application for the requested conference. He directed the parties to meet and submit a proposed briefing schedule for the defendants’ anticipated motion, and stated that a previously scheduled conference had been set in error. Judge Broderick did not decide the anticipated summary-judgment motion or the merits of the remaining claims.
The detailed version
- Elgalad v. New York City Department Of Education · No. 1:17-cv-04849
- Vernon Broderick
- Apr. 20, 2021
What the court decided
Judge Vernon S. Broderick endorsed a defense letter stating “APPLICATION DENIED” and “SO ORDERED.” The court directed the parties to meet and submit a proposed briefing schedule for the defendants’ anticipated motion by April 23, 2021. The court also stated that a pre-motion conference previously scheduled for April 29, 2021, had been scheduled in error. The text does not state that the court ruled on the anticipated summary-judgment motion or on the merits of any claim.
Background
Ahmed M. Elgalad, identified as proceeding without a lawyer, brought claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Sections 1981 and 1983, the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights Law. He alleged discrimination based on his religion, identified as Muslim, and race or color, identified as white, as well as retaliation.
The defendants were the Board of Education of the City School District of the City of New York, operating as the New York City Department of Education, and Michelle Rochon, Kabeya Mbuyi, and Livingstone Hilaire. The letter states that Rochon is now known as Dr. Michelle Penn, that Hilaire died in May 2020, and that Elgalad had not substituted a party for Hilaire.
The letter states that, on September 24, 2018, the court granted in part and denied in part the defendants’ motion to dismiss the amended complaint. The remaining claims were race discrimination under Section 1981 against Mbuyi; discrimination claims under the state and city human-rights laws against Rochon, Mbuyi, and Hilaire; retaliation claims under Section 1981 and those state and city laws against Rochon, Mbuyi, and Hilaire; and municipal liability under Section 1983 against the Department of Education.
Defendants’ proposed summary-judgment arguments
The defendants argued that Elgalad’s Section 1981 claims against Mbuyi must fail because Mbuyi was a state actor. They also argued that Elgalad could not identify evidence supporting his discrimination or retaliation claims under the state and city human-rights laws or Section 1983.
The defendants contended that Elgalad had not shown a materially adverse employment action. They said that the Department stopped paying him for covering absent teachers during lunch or preparation periods only because he had asked not to receive those assignments. They also argued that comments attributed to Mbuyi, disciplinary conferences, an evaluation by Hilaire, and later employment actions did not establish discriminatory or retaliatory motive.
The letter described several disciplinary matters, including an incident involving a student who had trouble breathing, complaints about Elgalad’s interactions with college volunteers, tardiness, and an investigation-related incident. It also stated that, after a hearing under New York Education Law § 3020-a, Elgalad received a $1,000 fine and was reassigned from the High School for Global Citizenship to the Department of Education’s Absent Teacher Reserve.
Disposition
Judge Broderick denied the defendants’ application for the requested pre-motion conference. The order did not grant or deny summary judgment, dismiss any remaining claim, or determine whether the defendants’ proposed arguments were correct. The Clerk of Court was directed to send the endorsement to Elgalad.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.