Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009...2:13 pm
Update on Fred Meyer Sweetie Case
Last August an Alaskan federal jury returned a $200,000 verdict for a woman, Martha Johnson, who claimed that her Fred Meyer supervisor had fired her in order to hire his hoped-for paramour. The jury relied on the covenant of good faith and fair dealing implied in all Alaska employment contracts. Judge Ralph Beistline later awarded $76,000 in interest, fees, and costs. Fred Meyer appealed.
The appeal is now fully briefed; the 9th Circuit has not yet set oral argument.
Here are the following briefs:
Fred Meyer Opening Brief
Johnson Opening Brief
Fred Meyer Reply Brief
Johnson Reply Brief
Mark Choate of Juneau represents the employee. Peter Gruenstein of Anchorage is local counsel for the employer.
Whether paramour-favoritism violates sex discrimination laws or the good faith covenant is an open question in Alaska, as well as many other states. The recent publicity about David Letterman brought the topic to the fore, once more. For more on the legal issues in the cases, go here.
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