Opinion ID: 1803833
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Entitlement to due process

Text: LSUHSC and Dr. Stucker argue that even though Dr. Driscoll may have had a property interest in the letter of recommendation, he was no longer entitled to due process because he was neither a resident nor under a contract of employment with LSUHSC. After careful consideration of the record and the various arguments presented, we find Dr. Driscoll was entitled to due process under the facts presented herein. Due process is an elusive concept. Hannah v. Larche, 363 U.S. 420, 80 S.Ct. 1502, 4 L.Ed.2d 1307 (1960). Its exact boundaries are undefinable, and its content varies according to specific factual contexts. Id. As a generalization, it can be said due process embodies the differing rules of fair play which through the years have become associated with differing types of proceedings. Id. When coupled with government officials's communications that stigmatize the plaintiff, a claim of deprivation of liberty or property interest without due process will lie where there is a loss, infringement or denial of a government right or benefit previously enjoyed. Roth, 408 U.S. at 573, 92 S.Ct. 2701. Moreover, a liberty interest is implicated triggering procedural due process requirements when the state imposes a stigma or other disability upon the plaintiff that forecloses his freedom to take advantage of other employment opportunities. Id., 408 U.S. at 574-75, 92 S.Ct. 2701. In such instances, the right to some sort of prior hearing is paramount. Id. In the present case, we find it inconsequential that Dr. Stucker's withdrawal of the letter of recommendation came when Dr. Driscoll was neither a LSUHSC resident nor under current contract of employment with LSUHSC. A benefit need not accrue before a person's employment is completed to constitute a term, condition, or privilege of that employment relationship. Hishon v. King & Spalding, 467 U.S. 69, 104 S.Ct. 2229, 81 L.Ed.2d 59 (1984). See also, e.g., Mallare v. St. Luke's Hospital of Bethlehem, 699 F.Supp. 1127 (E.D.Penn.1988) (holding in a Title VII case that an additional factor relating to employment was the doctor's understanding during his employment as a resident physician in the defendant hospital that he would be granted staff privileges, if he so desired, upon successful completion of the residency program). Applying this body of law to the present case, it is evident the benefit due Dr. Driscoll under his former residency contract with LSUHSC was his future right, after LSUHSC's certification of the successful completion of his residency, to take the otolaryngology test administered by the American Board of Otolaryngology. A review of the record shows there was a contractual nexus between Dr. Driscoll's participation as a medical resident, his employment at LSUHSC, and his board eligibility to take the specialty examination in otolaryngology at some future time. [6] It is a basic tenet of contract law that parties to an obligation will perform the conditions of the obligation in good faith. La. Civ.Code Ann. art. 1759. Good faith is defined in part in the Sixth Edition of Black's Law Dictionary as [h]onesty of intention, and freedom from knowledge of circumstances which ought to put the holder upon inquiry. When these factors are considered, it is clear Dr. Driscoll was entitled to receive a letter of recommendation if he complied with the obligations that applied to him. Correlatively, LSUHSC was obliged to properly evaluate performance of the residents and to inquire further if it thought it was necessary to revoke its earlier letter of recommendation. Thus, we find the fair play elements of due process should have governed Dr. Stucker's decision to subsequently withdraw the letter of recommendation.