Opinion ID: 2570487
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Haselhorst v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Text: Boone represented the plaintiff in this Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) case filed in federal court, with Magistrate Reid presiding. Boone's client had been fired by Wal-Mart prior to the effective date of the ADA. On July 7, 1995, Wal-Mart filed a motion for summary judgment. Boone filed a motion requesting additional time to respond. The court granted Boone's request, extending the deadline for response to October 5, 1995. On October 5, 1995, Boone filed a second request for additional time. The court denied the request, recalling that Boone had been admonished in another case that if in any case pending before the court Boone filed a motion for additional time on a date nearer to the deadline than 5 days, the motion would be denied. Accordingly, Boone's motion for additional time was denied, and Wal-Mart's motion for summary judgment was deemed submitted without a response. Prior to the decision regarding Wal-Mart's summary judgment motion, the case was dismissed with prejudice. At the disciplinary hearing, Boone was confronted with settled law published prior to the summary judgment date which clearly indicated that the ADA is not retroactive. Boone explained to the Panel that his theory of the case was not a simple or straightforward theory of retroactivity. Boone stated that when his client was fired by Wal-Mart, he was advised that he would be allowed to reapply for employment within 6 months. Boone's client did reapply, and his application was rejected. Boone's theory was that the facts in the case represented a continuing act in violation of the ADA, which began prior to the effective date of the ADA and culminated after the effective date. Boone asserted that his unique retroactivity theory established a good faith basis for filing the case. The Panel found that Boone intentionally filed a frivolous action and disregarded his duty to dismiss the case once he knew that the law did not support it. Boone objects to the Panel's finding that he intentionally filed a frivolous claim. He states that he argued in Haselhorst for an extension, modification, or reversal of existing ADA law in the complaint where he asserted a straddling theory of retroactivity. He argues that he filed the case with the intent to monitor developing caselaw that would support the plaintiff's claims. Paulie v. Cooperative Union Mercantile Co. of Grinnell, Kansas Boone represented the plaintiff in this action brought under the ADA in the United States District Court for the District of Kansas. Magistrate Reid presided over the case. Problems developed in the case when Boone filed a motion requesting an additional 4 weeks to designate experts. In the order, Magistrate Reid recounted several cases where Boone had been admonished by the court to follow the orders of the court. Magistrate Reid granted Boone's motion for additional time, but ordered that no further extensions would be permitted in any case Boone had pending before the court. Boone failed to properly designate expert witnesses in the case, and the judge prohibited Boone from calling any experts at trial. Boone appealed the order to Judge Belot, United States District Judge. In an order entered on April 3, 1996, Judge Belot not only affirmed Reid's order, but expanded the court's order to all cases pending before Judge Belot in which Boone was involved. At the disciplinary hearing, Boone explained that at the outset of the case, his client was unable to finance expert witnesses. During the pendency of the case, Boone's client moved to Arkansas and obtained a new job. Boone believed that with the increased income from the new job, his client might be able to afford to hire an expert in the case. When his client was unable to pay an expert, Boone researched the contested issues and determined that an expert was unnecessary. The case settled with a satisfactory judgment in favor of the plaintiff. The Panel found that Boone requested the additional time to designate an expert as a precautionary measure only and determined that the motion was frivolous. Boone asserts to this court that the Panel's finding that he frivolously filed motions for an extension of time to designate expert witnesses is contrary to the record. He points to the transcript of the hearing before the Panel where he testified that at the time the extensions of time were requested, he believed that it might be necessary for experts to be designated, but after requesting the extension, he concluded that a defense against the defendants' argument that the plaintiff was not disabled would be successful without expert testimony.