Opinion ID: 762420
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: kroger's motion to strike

Text: 9 We first address Watts' challenge that the district court erred in granting Kroger's Motion to Strike several unsworn statements submitted by Watts. Watts attached to her Motion in Opposition to Summary Judgment several handwritten statements that she had collected from her co-workers. The statements were signed, but were not sworn, notarized, or in the form of affidavits. The district court held that the statements were not competent summary judgment evidence for the purposes of FED.R.CIV.P. 56(e), and that the statements did not comply with federal requirements for unsworn declarations. 10 The district court relied on the decision in Duplantis v. Shell Offshore, Inc., 948 F.2d 187 (5th Cir.1991) to reject the statements Watts presented. In Duplantis, this court noted that a plaintiff must respond to an adequate motion for summary judgment with admissible evidence. Id. at 191. Watts argues that if the touchstone for consideration is the ultimate admissibility of the evidence, the district court erred by not considering the statements at all. Offering no support from the Federal Rules of Evidence or relevant case law, she suggests that the documents were authenticated through her affidavit and properly relate admissions made by Bullington and others. She further argues that to ignore such evidence would amount to a grave injustice on the part of this court. 11 This court reviews the district court's decision to strike lay opinion testimony under an abuse of discretion standard. Pedraza v. Jones, 71 F.3d 194, 197 (5th Cir.1995). We hold that the district court did not abuse its discretion in striking the statements. Because the statements were unsworn and were not presented to the court in a form required by Rule 56 we cannot say that the district court acted outside of its boundaries. Though Watts' argument that such a conclusion elevates form over substance may be intellectually compelling, it is of no practical merit to this court. Rule 56 clearly prescribes the manner in which such documents must be presented to the court. Without support for her argument that the statements are nonetheless admissible, we find Watts' contention groundless.