Opinion ID: 2995506
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: 3, Ex.4 (emphasis in original).

Text: Accordingly, Mr. Goetzke’s physician scheduled his patient for work hardening in mid-August. In late July, approximately one week after receiving the results of the FCE, Mr. Goetzke filed an application for assistance with the Indiana Industrial Board./3 In this letter, Mr. Goetzke questioned the quality of the care that he received. More precisely, he alleged that Foy interfered with his doctor’s orders and failed to stay abreast of his test results. Finally, Mr. Goetzke challenged the FCE as biased and inaccurat[e]. R.26, Ex.M. The letter made no reference to Ferro. Crawford learned of Mr. Goetzke’s application for assistance on August 13, 1997. It relayed this information to Hartford at Ferro. After completing his work hardening in mid-August, Mr. Goetzke returned to work on light duty pursuant to his doctor’s orders. However, upon Mr. Goetzke’s arrival at work, Ferro officials informed him that he was being terminated for defrauding the company. According to com pany officials, the contents of the videotape and Mr. Goetzke’s FCE had warranted this action. B. District Court Proceedings 1. After his termination, Mr. Goetzke filed this action against Ferro and Crawford in Indiana state court. The complaint, which contained multiple counts, alleged that: Ferro discharged Mr. Goetzke in retaliation for filing a worker’s compensation claim; Crawford had tortiously interfered in Mr. Goetzke’s employment relationship with Ferro; and Ferro and Crawford had conspired to end Mr. Goetzke’s employment. Invoking the diversity jurisdiction of the district court, Ferro and Crawford removed the case to the federal system. Once before the district court, Ferro and Crawford moved for summary judgment on all counts. Ferro contended that, under Indiana law, Mr. Goetzke, an employee covered by a collective bargaining agreement, could not raise a retaliatory discharge claim. In the alternative, it submitted that Mr. Goetzke could neither demonstrate a causal connection between his termination and the filing of a worker’s compensation claim nor demonstrate the pretextual nature of Ferro’s proffered reason for his termination. With regard to the tortious interference claim, Crawford contended that, pursuant to an Indiana exclusivity statute, the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over this portion of Mr. Goetzke’s complaint. In any event, according to Crawford, Mr. Goetzke had failed to establish the elements of the tort of tortious interference. Finally, both Ferro and Crawford maintained that the record contained no evidence that indicated a civil conspiracy. 2. The district court entered summary judgment for Ferro and Crawford on all counts. As a threshold matter, the district court rejected Ferro’s contention that Mr. Goetzke could not maintain a retaliatory discharge action under Indiana law. Specifically, it concluded that a decision of the Court of Appeals of Indiana had expressly allowed employees covered by collective bargaining agreements to bring retaliatory discharge claims. Turning to the substantive aspects of Mr. Goetzke’s complaint, the court found that he had failed to establish a causal nexus between his termination and the filing of his worker’s compensation claim. According to the district court, Ferro had terminated Mr. Goetzke solely on its belief that he defrauded the company. In the view of the district court, a paucity of evidence existed with regard to the remaining claims. Mr. Goetzke could not demonstrate that Crawford and Ferro had engaged in an unlawful activity--namely retaliatory discharge-- thereby foreclosing the civil conspiracy claim. After rejecting Crawford’s contention that federal courts lacked subject matter jurisdiction over the tortious interference claim, the district court concluded that Mr. Goetzke had failed to prove the elements of the tort. At a minimum, no evidence existed to prove that Crawford induced Ferro to terminate Mr. Goetzke.