Opinion ID: 760179
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Rejection of Hawkins's Claim for Denial of Promotions

Text: 46 Hawkins also contends that the district court erred in failing to find that LSC discriminated on the basis of race or gender in denying her promotions. We see no basis for reversal. 47 To prevail on a denial-of-promotion claim, the plaintiff must, inter alia, prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the failure to promote was actually motivated in whole or in part by unlawful discrimination. See, e.g., Stern v. Trustees of Columbia University, 131 F.3d 305, 312 (2d Cir.1997); Fisher v. Vassar College, 114 F.3d 1332, 1346-47 (2d Cir.1997) (en banc), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 118 S.Ct. 851, 139 L.Ed.2d 752 (1998). A trial court's conclusions as to the employer's motivation and the existence of discriminatory intent are findings of fact, see, e.g., Anderson v. Bessemer City, 470 U.S. 564, 573, 105 S.Ct. 1504, 84 L.Ed.2d 518 (1985); Pullman-Standard v. Swint, 456 U.S. 273, 289-90, 102 S.Ct. 1781, 72 L.Ed.2d 66 (1982); Cornwell v. Robinson, 23 F.3d 694, 706 (2d Cir.1994), and may not be set aside on appeal unless they are clearly erroneous, see, e.g., Fed.R.Civ.P. 52(a); Anderson v. Bessemer City, 470 U.S. at 573, 105 S.Ct. 1504; Cornwell v. Robinson, 23 F.3d at 706. The decision as to whose testimony to credit and as to which of competing inferences to draw is within the province of the trier of fact, and [w]here there are two permissible views of the evidence, the factfinder's choice between them cannot be clearly erroneous. Anderson v. Bessemer City, 470 U.S. at 574, 105 S.Ct. 1504. If the district court's account of the evidence is plausible in light of the record viewed in its entirety, the court of appeals may not reverse it even though convinced that had it been sitting as the trier of fact, it would have weighed the evidence differently. Id. at 573-74, 105 S.Ct. 1504. 48 The findings challenged here are far from clearly erroneous. Lipofsky testified that he did not appoint Hawkins to the Queens Senior Attorney position because, after he expressly informed Hawkins of the job opening and she did not indicate any interest, he assumed that she was not interested in the position. As to the East Meadow position, Lipofsky testified that he did not promote Hawkins because he eliminated the position in order to reduce LSC's operating costs. The trial court was entitled to credit these explanations, which were supported by the record as a whole. For example, Hawkins acknowledged both that she had been informed of the Queens position and that she had not expressed her interest. Moreover, although Hawkins presented some evidence to cast doubt on the genuineness of LSC's proffered explanations, she produced little to show that LSC or its employees were actually motivated by race or gender. Certainly the evidence in her favor was not so overwhelming as to warrant overturning the trial court's finding that she had not proven such discrimination by a preponderance of the evidence.