Opinion ID: 705166
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Seiler's Liability For the Acts of Its Employees

Text: 47 Applying Karibian's teachings, the first issue to be considered in determining Seiler's liability for the assaults is whether any of the three individual defendants can be considered Tomka's supervisor. The district court held that Lucey should be treated as plaintiff's supervisor at the summary judgment stage. We agree with the district court that Tomka has alleged facts sufficient to enable a fact finder to find that Lucey acted as plaintiff's supervisor at Hill Haven: although Taylor was Tomka's direct supervisor and Lucey did not give Tomka direction at Hill Haven, Lucey was the district manager responsible for the accounts Tomka had been assigned, including Hill Haven. Lucey's position in the Seiler hierarchy would enable him to review Tomka's performance at Hill Haven and communicate any thoughts about plaintiff to Taylor, thereby affecting Tomka's future with Seiler. This evidence is sufficient to create a fact issue as to Lucey's supervisory role vis-a-vis Tomka, and we therefore treat him as Tomka's supervisor. 48 The district court also held that neither Polonsky nor Conroy should be treated as Tomka's supervisors. Polonsky was an unassigned starts and surveys manager like Tomka and clearly was not her supervisor. Conroy, who was the account manager at Hill Haven, had no direct control over Tomka's duties, did not have the power to discharge her, and was approximately at a level equivalent to Tomka in the Seiler hierarchy. However, his position at Hill Haven gave him significant control over Tomka's worksite, and he, like Lucey, could report unfavorably on her work. Further, Tomka alleges that Conroy actually controlled much of Tomka's work at Hill Haven. Although the question is a close one, this evidence is sufficient to raise a fact issue as to whether Conroy was Tomka's supervisor, and we treat him as such for purposes of summary judgment. 49 Thus, Seiler is liable for the assaults if Lucey or Conroy, plaintiff's supervisors, used their actual or apparent authority to accomplish the rape, or if they were otherwise aided by the existence of the agency relationship to carry out the assaults. In short, Tomka must allege facts which establish a nexus between the supervisory authority of Lucey or Conroy and the December 6 rapes. Tomka attempts to do this by arguing that Lucey convened the December 6 dinner as a business meeting, and that the conduct of the individual defendants, including the excessive drinking at the meeting, was part and parcel of the Seiler corporate culture fostered by Lucey and Conroy in their capacity as Seiler's agents.