Opinion ID: 849201
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Plaintiff's McDonnell Douglas Prima Facie Case

Text: As noted, in order to establish a prima facie case of discrimination under McDonnell Douglas, plaintiff was required to present admissible evidence that (1) she belongs to a protected class, (2) she suffered an adverse employment action, (3) she was qualified for the position, and (4) the job was given to another person under circumstances giving rise to an inference of unlawful discrimination. Lytle, supra at 172-173, 579 N.W.2d 906; McDonnell Douglas, supra at 802, 93 S.Ct. 1817. [13] There is no dispute in this case regarding the first two elements: Plaintiff is black, and she did not receive the promotion for which she applied. At issue here are the third and fourth elements of a prima facie case. The third element requires proof that plaintiff was qualified for the position she sought. The fourth element requires proof that the job was given to another person under circumstances giving rise to an inference of discrimination. Defendants argue that plaintiff has failed to establish the third and fourth elements of a McDonnell Douglas prima facie case. They contend that, even if minimally qualified, plaintiff had neither supervisory experience nor training or experience in financial or accounting matterstwo crucial preferred qualifications of the Office Manager position, and that, in any event, she was far less qualified than Michelle Block. In defendants' view, a plaintiff alleging a discriminatory failure to promote or hire can only establish a prima facie case under McDonnell Douglas by providing evidence that he is at least as qualified as the successful candidate. We disagree. As an initial matter, nothing in the Supreme Court's decision in McDonnell Douglas suggests that a plaintiff is required to offer evidence of relative qualifications in order to establish a prima facie case of discrimination. Nor have the Court's subsequent decisions identified such a requirement. In fact, we believe that at least one of the Court's post- McDonnell Douglas decisions suggests that a plaintiff is never required to establish relative qualifications. In Patterson v. McLean Credit Union, 491 U.S. 164, 109 S.Ct. 2363, 105 L.Ed.2d 132 (1989), the Court addressed a plaintiff's burden of persuading a jury of intentional discrimination. The federal district court in that case had instructed the jury that the plaintiff, in order to prevail on her claim that the defendant failed to promote her because of race discrimination, was required to show that she was better qualified than the employee who received the promotion. In determining that this was error, the Supreme Court emphasized that a plaintiff is not limited to presenting evidence of a certain type.... The evidence which petitioner can present in an attempt to establish that respondent's stated reasons are pretextual may take a variety of forms. Indeed, she might seek to demonstrate that respondent's claim to have promoted a better qualified applicant was pretextual by showing that she was in fact better qualified than the person chosen for the position. The District Court erred, however, in instructing the jury that in order to succeed petitioner was required to make such a showing. There are certainly other ways in which petitioner could seek to prove that respondent's reasons were pretextual. Thus, for example, petitioner could seek to persuade the jury that respondent had not offered the true reason for its promotion decision by presenting evidence of respondent's past treatment of petitioner, including the instances of the racial harassment which she alleges and respondent's failure to train her for an accounting position. While we do not intend to say this evidence necessarily would be sufficient to carry the day, it cannot be denied that it is one of the various ways in which petitioner might seek to prove intentional discrimination on the part of respondent. She may not be forced to pursue any particular means of demonstrating that respondent's stated reasons are pretextual. [ Id. at 187-188, 109 S.Ct. 2363 (citations omitted).] Because a plaintiff has no obligation to prove relative qualifications to a jury, it can hardly be disputed that a plaintiff cannot be required to offer evidence that he is at least as qualified as the successful candidate in order to establish a prima facie case under McDonnell Douglas. See Walker v. Mortham, 158 F.3d 1177, 1192 (C.A.11, 1998) (We cannot imagine that the Supreme Court would speak so strongly regarding the lack of any burden to prove lesser qualifications and still leave available to the defendant at summary judgment the argument that the plaintiff failed to prove equal qualifications). Nor does anything in the language of the Civil Rights Act itself suggest a requirement that a plaintiff prove relative qualifications in order to succeed on a discrimination claim, let alone require that a plaintiff offer such evidence in order to survive a motion for summary disposition or directed verdict. As stated, the ultimate factual inquiry in any discrimination case is whether unlawful discrimination was a motivating factor in the employer's decision. We think it beyond question that, although relative qualifications certainly may be relevant in a discrimination case, particularly, as explained below, if a defendant relies on them to rebut the presumption of discrimination created by the plaintiff's prima facie case, the fact that a plaintiff was less qualified than the successful applicant would not necessarily preclude a jury from finding that unlawful discrimination was nevertheless a motivating factor in the employer's decision. Therefore, we hold that a plaintiff is not required to provide evidence that he is at least as qualified as the successful candidate in order to establish a prima facie case under McDonnell Douglas. By this holding, we do not mean to suggest that a plaintiff can establish the third and fourth elements of a McDonnell Douglas prima facie case merely by showing that he was qualified for the position and that a nonminority candidate was chosen instead. While a plaintiff is not required to show circumstances giving rise to an inference of discrimination in any one specific manner, the plaintiff's burden of production remains to present evidence that the employer's actions, if otherwise unexplained, are more likely than not based on the consideration of impermissible factors. Burdine, supra at 253, 101 S.Ct. 1089. In short, a plaintiff must offer evidence showing something more than an isolated decision to reject a minority applicant. See Teamsters v. United States, 431 U.S. 324, 358, n. 44, 97 S.Ct. 1843, 52 L.Ed.2d 396 (1977). As a matter of law, an inference of unlawful discrimination does not arise merely because an employer has chosen between two qualified candidates. [14] Under such a scenario, an equallyif not morereasonable inference would be that the employer simply selected the candidate that it believed to be most qualified for the position. See id. In this case, plaintiff met the third element of a McDonnell Douglas prima facie case by presenting evidence that she was qualified for the office manager position. Indeed, as stated, defendants themselves twice confirmed in writing their belief that plaintiff was among those who had the necessary qualifications for the position. Finally, plaintiff presented evidence from which a jury, if unaware of defendants' reasons, could infer unlawful discrimination. Although she was not required to proceed in this manner, plaintiff presented evidence suggesting that she was rejected in favor of a less qualified white applicant. There was evidence that (1) only plaintiff had a college degree and credits toward a master's degree in industrial relations, and (2) only plaintiff had substantial work experience with defendants. Thus, we conclude that plaintiff presented evidence supporting the fourth and final element of a McDonnell Douglas prima facie case, and that the burden then shifted to defendants to articulate a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for their decision to hire Michelle Block instead of plaintiff.