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100.docIN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
Ann Beck, )
)
Plaintiff, )
)
v. ) No. ____________
)
Kelpen Knab LLP, )
)
Defendant. ) JURY TRIAL DEMANDED
______________________________)
COMPLAINT
Plaintiff, Ann Beck, by and through her attorney, Michael H. Koby, alleges the following:
JURISDICTION AND VENUE
1. This is a civil action seeking relief under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq., to redress unlawful discrimination. Jurisdiction of this Court is invoked pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331.
2. Venue is proper in this judicial district pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b) because the actions giving rise to plaintiff’s claim alleged below were committed within the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.
PARTIES
3. During all times mentioned in this Complaint, Plaintiff Ann Beck was, and still is, a citizen of the United States and a resident of St. Louis, Missouri.
4. During all times mentioned in this Complaint, each partner of the defendant law firm Kelpen Knab LLP was, and still is, a resident of St. Louis, Missouri.
BACKGROUND
5. Plaintiff was, at the time of the events leading to this Complaint, a third-year law student at Washington University School of Law and had applied for a position as a first-year associate at Kelpen Knab LLP.
6. On August 10, 2017, Ann Beck interviewed for the position of first-year associate at Kelpen Knab LLP.
7. Plaintiff was interviewed by seven male attorneys employed by Defendant.
8. On August 10, 2017, during Plaintiff's day of interviews at Kelpen Knab LLP, Plaintiff was interviewed by Mr. Alex Herrera, the hiring partner at Kelpen Knab LLP.
9. While being interviewed over lunch, Plaintiff was asked questions about her plans to have children and her boyfriend’s attitudes concerning her working long hours and traveling with male attorneys. The male applicants who were interviewed for the same position were not asked similar questions.
10. On August 31, 2017, Plaintiff received notice from Kelpen Knab LLP that she had not received an offer of employment.
11. Plaintiff, alleging unlawful discrimination, timely filed a complaint against Kelpen Knab LLP with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on September 4, 2017, and was issued a Right to Sue letter on January 4, 2018.
12. Gender-stereotyped interview questions were a motivating factor in Defendant's decision not to hire Plaintiff.
13. Defendant willfully discriminated against Plaintiff, violating Title VII.
PRAYER FOR RELIEF
WHEREFORE, Plaintiff demands judgment against Defendant for damages in the amount of one hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($150,000), together with any accrued interest, the attendant costs of this action, and whatever additional damages the Court deems appropriate.
Respectfully submitted,
Falcone & Brockston
By: ___________________
Federal Bar Number 334678
111 Central Ave., Suite 210
St. Louis, MO
(314) 111-3230
Attorneys for Plaintiff
Dated: January 5, 2018
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
Ann Beck, )
)
Plaintiff, )
v. ) Case No. 4:18CV1012 RWS
)
Kelpen Knab LLP, )
)
Defendant. ) JURY TRIAL DEMANDED
______________________________)
ANSWER
Comes now Defendant, by and through its attorney, Amy Marks, for its answer to the Complaint in the above-captioned action:
1. Paragraph 1 of the Complaint contains legal conclusions as to which no answer is required. Subject to the foregoing, Defendant denies the allegations of paragraph 1.
2. Defendant denies that it acted improperly, giving rise to any claim for relief. Subject to the foregoing, Defendant admits that venue is proper.
3. Defendant admits the allegations contained in paragraphs 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10.
4. Defendant denies the allegations contained in paragraphs 1, 12, and 13.
5. Defendant does not have sufficient information to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations contained in paragraphs 3 and 11.
WHEREFORE, Defendant respectfully requests that Plaintiff's demand for relief be denied.
Respectfully submitted,
Battle & Boothby
By: ____________________
Amy Marks, Esq.
Fed. Bar No. 324665
1264 Brentwood Drive
St. Louis, MO 63136
(314) 862-5679
Attorneys for Kelpen Knab LLP
Dated: January 8, 2018
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on January 8, 2018, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri by using the CM/ECF system. I certify that all participants in the case are registered CM/ECF users and that service will be accomplished by the CM/ECF system.
Michael H. Esq.
Falcone & Brockston
111 Central Ave., Suite 210
St. Louis, MO 63130
(314) 111-3230 Battle & Boothby
By: ________________
Amy Marks, Esq.
Fed. Bar No. 324665
1264 Brentwood Drive
St. Louis, MO 63136
(314) 862-5679
Attorneys for Kelpen Knab LLP
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
Ann Beck, )
)
Plaintiff, )
v. ) Case No. 4:18CV1012 RWS
)
Kelpen Knab LLP, )
)
Defendant. )
______________________________)
PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Plaintiff, Ann Beck, by her attorney, Michael H. Koby, asks the Court to grant Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment pursuant to Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on the ground that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact.
Under the mixed-motive analysis of Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins, 490 U.S. 228 (1989) and the Civil Rights Act of 1991, Defendant Kelpen Knab LLP unlawfully discriminated against Plaintiff. Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment should be granted.
Respectfully submitted,
Falcone & Brockston
By: ___________________
Federal Bar Number 33678
111 Central Ave., Suite 210
St. Louis, MO 63130
(314) 111-3230
Attorneys for Plaintiff
Dated: February 22, 2018
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on February 22, 2018, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri by using the CM/ECF system. I certify that all participants in the case are registered CM/ECF users and that service will be accomplished by the CM/ECF system.
Amy Marks, Esq.
Battle & Boothby
1264 Brentwood Drive
St. Louis, MO 63136
(314) 862-5679
Falcone & Brockston
By: ___________________
Federal Bar Number 33678
111 Central Ave., Suite 210
St. Louis, MO 63130
(314) 111-3230
Attorneys for Plaintiff
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
Ann Beck, )
)
Plaintiff, )
v. ) Case No. 4:18CV1012 RWS
)
Kelpen Knab LLP, )
)
Defendant. )
______________________________)
PLAINTIFF’S AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Ann Beck, being duly sworn, deposes and says:
1. I am the named plaintiff in this action. In addition, I am a third-year law student at Washington University School of Law. I make this affidavit in support of my Motion for Summary Judgment.
2. After graduating from Yale University in 2009 with a Masters in International Relations, I began working as an intelligence analyst for the U.S. Department of State. At the State Department, I wrote numerous analytical articles and advised policy makers on issues related to my portfolio. After two years with the State Department, I moved to St. Louis, Missouri for a position in the government affairs division of a St. Louis-based international company. There, I had frequent opportunities to work closely with company executives and the legal department in drafting position papers and in advocating favorable legislation.
3. In law school, I finished my first two years ranked in the top twenty percent (20%) of my class. Furthermore, I wrote on for the Washington University Global Studies Law Review and served as a primary editor. In addition to my law school work, I was heavily involved in the International Law Society as a 1L representative and then as president during my 2L year. During the first semester of my third year, I participated in Washington University’s International Justice and Conflict Resolution Field Placement at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, where I served as a judicial clerk. I participated in the Civil Rights and Community Justice Clinic, working at an immigration law firm during the first semester of my second year, then interned for the Department of Justice during my second semester. During the summer of 2016, I interned in Brussels for the legal department of the European headquarters of Solutia Inc., working primarily on antitrust and M&A issues. During the summer of 2017, I worked as a summer associate for Picard, Kentz & Rowe LLP, a firm in Washington, DC.
4. I received an offer to return as a first-year associate from Picard, Kentz & Rowe LLP, but decided instead that I wished to remain in St. Louis following graduation.
5. In July 2017, I submitted my resume to the Career Services Offices at Washington University School of Law to be considered for a position at Kelpen Knab LLP. I was granted a screening interview on campus and was then invited for a day of call-back interviews. On August 10, 2017, I met with Lauren Nichols in the morning and then was walked around and met others in the office. I had three separate interviews at the firm with three male attorneys before participating in an interview over lunch with four male attorneys.
6. The interviewers present at lunch were Mr. Alex Herrera, Mr. Daniel Cahan, Mr. Jim McQuade, and Mr. Andrew Watkins. During lunch, Mr. Herrera noticed a ring on the fourth finger of my left hand and asked me if I was married. On finding out that I am not married, but that I have a serious boyfriend and plans to marry, Mr. Herrera then asked me what my boyfriend would think of my working long hours at the firm and traveling with male attorneys. I told him that my boyfriend is an attorney who understands the demands of the job and who would have no problem with my working long hours or traveling with male colleagues.
7. Mr. Herrera also asked me whether I planned to have children and, if so, how I would manage professional and personal responsibilities. Before I could answer, Mr. Herrera went on to describe situations in which he had hired and trained female attorneys, only for them to leave the firm to raise children. The other gentlemen who were present, Mr. Daniel Cahan, Mr. Jim McQuade, and Mr. Andrew Watkins, did not say anything about Mr. Herrera’s questions or my responses. Mr. Herrera concluded by stating that he loses at least one attorney each year to “the baby.”
8. These questions made me feel uncomfortable and concerned because I felt that Mr. Herrera was questioning my commitment to practicing law and working long hours simply because I am a woman.
9. On August 31, 2017, I received a rejection letter from Kelpen Knab LLP.
/s/ _____________________________
Ann Beck
Sworn before me this
5th day of February, 2018
/s/
Jamie Roggen
Notary Public
No. 9876543
Certified in St. Louis, MO
Commission expires on 1/1/21
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on February 5, 2018, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri by using the CM/ECF system. I certify that all participants in the case are registered CM/ECF users and that service will be accomplished by the CM/ECF system.
Amy Marks, Esq.
Battle & Boothby
1264 Brentwood Drive
St. Louis, MO 63136
(314) 862-5679
Falcone & Brockston
By: ___________________
Federal Bar Number 33678
111 Central Ave., Suite 210
St. Louis, MO 63130
(314) 111-3230
Attorneys for Plaintiff
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
Ann Beck, )
)
Plaintiff, )
v. ) Case No. 4:18CV1012 RWS
)
Kelpen Knab LLP, )
)
Defendant. )
______________________________)
DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Defendant, Kelpen Knab LLP, by its attorney, Amy Marks, asks the Court to grant Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment pursuant to Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on the ground that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact.
While Defendant Kelpen Knab LLP agrees that the Price Waterhouse mixed-motive analysis, rather than the McDonnell Douglas pretext analysis, is the correct framework, Defendant’s actions do not constitute illegal discrimination. Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment should be granted.
/s/ _____________________________
Amy Marks, Esq.
Fed. Bar No. 324665
Battle & Boothby
1264 Brentwood Drive
St. Louis, MO 63136
(314) 862-5679
Dated: February 22, 2018
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on February 22, 2018, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri by using the CM/ECF system. I certify that all participants in the case are registered CM/ECF users and that service will be accomplished by the CM/ECF system.
Falcone & Brockston
111 Central Ave., Suite 210
St. Louis, MO 63130
(314) 111-3230
Battle & Boothby
By: ________________
Amy Marks, Esq.
Fed. Bar No. 324665
1264 Brentwood Drive
St. Louis, MO 63136
(314) 862-5679
Attorneys for Kelpen Knab LLP
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
Ann Beck, )
)
Plaintiff, )
v. ) Case No. 4:18CV1012 RWS
)
Kelpen Knab LLP, )
)
Defendant. )
______________________________)
DEFENDANT’S AFFIDAVIT SUBMITTED BY STEPHEN D. MEYERS
STEPHEN D. MEYERS, being duly sworn, deposes and says:
1. I am the managing partner of the law firm Kelpen Knab LLP. I have been employed as an attorney by Kelpen Knab LLP for thirty-four years. I became a partner in October 1985, and was elected managing partner in 2008.
2. Kelpen Knab LLP employs ninety attorneys, thirty-one of whom are partners.
3. Attorneys at Kelpen Knab LLP work long hours, as they do at most law firms. The average number of hours billed by first-year associates at Kelpen Knab LLP is twenty-one hundred hours.
4. To meet our hiring needs, we have a Lawyer Personnel Committee that consists of seven attorneys. The Committee follows a standard procedure. Every year it sends a member to several different law schools in several cities to conduct screening interviews of third-year law students. From those screening interviews, the Committee selects twelve students to invite for call-back interviews. During the call-back, each candidate interviews with every member of the Lawyer Personnel Committee and has lunch with at least two Committee members. The Committee meets after all of the candidates have been interviewed to discuss their impressions and the qualifications of the candidates. The Committee then votes on which candidate will be recommended to receive an offer. The chair of the Committee presents the Committee's recommendation at the next partnership meeting, and the partnership votes. In all my years with Kelpen Knab LLP, I have never known of an instance where the partnership did not adopt the Committee's recommendation.
5. The chair of the Lawyer Personnel Committee is Mr. Alex Herrera, who is the hiring partner at Kelpen Knab LLP. The other members of the Committee, in order of seniority, are Mr. Daniel Cahan, Mr. Jim McQuade, Mr. Andrew Watkins, Mr. Benjamin Rose, Mr. Christian Spletzer, and Mr. Christian Hicks.
6. Each interviewer completes a standard evaluation at the conclusion of each interview. The evaluation asks the interviewer to rank the candidate on several different criteria, including communication skills, ability to fit in with the other attorneys at the firm, and the overall impression of the candidate. There is also a section for comments.
7. One offer is extended. If that candidate rejects our offer, the Committee meets again to decide which of the other candidates should receive an offer.
8. This year, twelve students were invited for call-back interviews. Of those twelve, six were male and six were female. Seven students accepted their invitations; six of those were male.
9. On August 23, 2017, the partnership voted to accept the Lawyer Personnel Committee's recommendation to extend an offer to Robert Cassola. Robert Cassola maintained an “A” average during his first two years at Georgetown Law School, ranking him in the top 5% of his class. Cassola is also the managing editor of the prestigious Georgetown Law Review. The Committee sent a letter to Robert Cassola making him an offer to join our firm as a first-year associate. He accepted our offer on August 28, 2017, at which time we sent letters to the other six candidates, including Plaintiff, notifying them that we would be unable to consider them further for a position at that time.
/s/ _________________
Stephen D. Meyers
Sworn before me this
5th day of February, 2018
/s/
Joseph C. Broyan
Notary Public
No. 3456789
Certified in St. Louis, MO
Commission expires on 1/1/20
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on February 5, 2018, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri by using the CM/ECF system. I certify that all participants in the case are registered CM/ECF users and that service will be accomplished by the CM/ECF system.
Falcone & Brockston
111 Central Ave., Suite 210
St. Louis, MO 63130
(314) 111-3230
Battle & Boothby
By: ________________
Amy Marks, Esq.
Fed. Bar No. 324665
1264 Brentwood Drive
St. Louis, MO 63136
(314) 862-5679
Attorneys for Kelpen Knab LLP
STATUTORY APPENDIX
42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a): Unlawful employment practices.
It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer:
(1) to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; or
(2) to limit, segregate, or classify his employees or applicants for employment in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individual of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect his status as an employee, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
�Plaintiff admits there were legitimate reasons which may have factored into Defendant's decision not to hire Plaintiff, including that Plaintiff's grade point average at Washington University School of Law was lower than that of Robert Cassola, the candidate who received the position, at Georgetown Law School and that Plaintiff, unlike Cassola, was not the managing editor of the Georgetown Law Review. Plaintiff does not allege that discrimination was the sole factor in Defendant's employment decision; therefore, as both parties have stipulated, the pretext standard enunciated in McDonnell Douglas v. Green, 411 U.S. 792 (1973), is inapplicable to this case.
