Court Opinion

ID: 9734681
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 17:42:39.341454+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:19:27.854635
License: Public Domain

Dissenting Opinion by
Judge PELLEGRINI.
I respectfully dissent because the majority, based on an issue not raised, holds that a settlement agreement cannot be enforced by the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission (Commission) until the Commission adjudicates the underlying merits of the claim that led to the settlement agreement. By doing so, the majority improperly vitiates an agreement voluntarily entered into by the parties. Unlike the majority, I would place settlement agreements on a parity with Commission orders and consent orders and allow them to be enforced, as written, but only in this Court.
Seliga (Complainant) filed a complaint with the Commission in 2001 alleging that she had been a waitress for Blue Comet Diner (Employer), but after contracting hepatitis C, she was terminated from her employment in violation of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act (Act).1 On April 16, 2003, Complainant and Employer executed a Respondent and Complainant Agreement (Settlement Agreement) which provided that Employer agreed that Complainant “will be eligible to return to work at the Blue Comet Diner. Starting May 1, 2003, [Complainant] will be scheduled to work 3rd shift.” In exchange for her reinstatement, Complainant agreed to have her complaint dismissed by the Commission.
After a hearing, the hearing officer issued a recommendation and a proposed final order finding that Employer breached the Settlement Agreement and recommended that the Commission award Complainant $8,679.20 for past lost earnings, $6,401.20 for prospective lost earnings in lieu of reinstatement, plus pre-judgment and post-judgment interest at the statutory rate of 6% per annum. The Commission adopted the hearing officer’s opinion and recommendations by order dated February 1, 2005. This appeal by Employer followed.2a
*1073On appeal, Employer only contends that the Commission erred by rejecting its defense that it would be legally impossible for it to perform its contractual obligation under the terms of the Settlement Agreement. Even though the parties have not raised the issue, we issued an order directing the parties to file supplemental briefs to address the issue of whether the Commission had jurisdiction to enforce the Settlement Agreement. We ordered that:
[Tjheir briefs shall consider whether the Commission regulation at 16 Pa.Code 42.73 conflicts with Section 10 of the Human Relations Act, Act of Oct 27, 1955, 43 P.S. 960 and whether this Court’s holding in Mechensky v. Pa. Human Relations Commission should be overruled.
Without much discussion, the majority holds that the Commission has jurisdiction to enforce settlement agreements, but then goes on to hold that the Commission cannot enforce the Settlement Agreement because “it never resumed the investigation and proceeding that were aborted by Blue Comet’s execution of the Settlement Agreement.... The Commission must therefore resume the proceeding interrupted by the Settlement Agreement, because ... there has yet to be an adjudication issued by the Commission.” (Opinion at 1067.)
Not only does it make the question of whether the Commission can enforce a settlement decree moot because it is now a Commission order that all the parties agree can only be enforced by this court, but I respectfully dissent because the majority has:
• Decided the appeal based on a non-jurisdictional issue not raised by any of the parties.
• In deciding the issue not raised, rescinded a freely entered agreement between the parties.
• And as to the jurisdictional issue, the majority finds that the Commission can compel the enforcement of its own orders which is in direct violation of the Human Relations Act.
I.
The majority holds that a settlement agreement cannot be enforced by the Commission until it determined the underlying merits that were short circuited by the settlement agreement were adjudicated. In other words, the settlement agreement means nothing and cannot be enforced, which certainly has a chilling effect on parties entering into settlement agreements. Nowhere in the briefs or in the order in which we directed that supplemental briefs be filed was this issue even suggested.
II.
By making the settlement agreements non-enforceable as written, the majority puts both the complainant and the employer at risk. Complainants would have to make out the underlying discriminatory claim, and, if unsuccessful, the relief they obtained in their settlement agreements would be taken away. For employers, if the claim was made out, they would have to pay money, pay more money or do things that they did not agree to do in the settlement agreements. By doing so, the majority ignores that settlement agreements are contracts and enforced accord*1074ing to principles of contract law, and we are not free to vary their terms absent a clear showing of fraud, duress or mutual mistake. Pulcinello v. Consolidated Rail Corporation, 784 A.2d 122 (Pa.Super.2001).3 The majority has no basis to take away the bargain made by the parties to settle the employment dispute by nullifying a settlement agreement that they freely entered.
III.
Now to the issue that we were asked to address — whether the Commission had subject matter jurisdiction to enforce the Settlement Agreement.4 This issue is important because it determines what type of hearing or review a party receives by this Court once the Commission brings an enforcement action. If the Commission has jurisdiction, we would review its order in our appellate jurisdiction, and our scope of review would be the normal administrative agency scope of review.5 If, however, the Commission does not have jurisdiction, depending on the effect of the Commission regulations on settlement agreements, either 1) the Commission would be required to bring a petition to enforce in our original jurisdiction, and we would make our own findings of fact and independently determine damages or equitable remedies or 2) the party seeking enforcement of the settlement agreement would have to file an action in the court of common pleas seeking enforcement as if it were another contract action.
No one contends that if a party breaches an order, including a Commission consent order, Section 10 of the Act, 43 P.S. § 960, requires that the enforcement of the order be brought in our original jurisdiction. That section provides:
The complainant, the Attorney General or the Commission may secure enforcement of the order of the Commission or other appropriate relief. When the Commission has heard and decided any complaint brought before it, enforcement of its order shall be initiated by the filing of a petition in court, together with a transcript of the record of the hearing before the Commission, and issuance and service of a copy of said petition as in proceedings in equity. (Emphasis added.)
However, not all settlement agreements become a “consent order” under the Commission regulations. Section 42.72 of the Special Rules of Administrative Practice and Procedure for the Human Relations Commission (Special Rules), 16 Pa.Code § 42.72, provides:
*1075(a) If the unlawful practice complained of is eliminated by conference, conciliation and persuasion, the material terms of the adjustment may be incorporated into a conciliation agreement.
(b) A conciliation agreement or other predetermination settlement agreement may be entered as a consent order by the Commissioners if all parties consent to the entry and will have the same force and effect as a final order issued by the Commission after a hearing on the merits of a complaint. (Emphasis added.)
If, however, the parties have chosen for some reason not to reduce the settlement agreement to a consent order, then Section 42.73 of the Special Rules, 16 Pa.Code § 42.73, sets forth the procedure by which a settlement order applies. It provides:
(a) A party shall have the right to petition the Commission to consider whether another party has complied with the terms of adjustment or settlement, or both.
(b) A party may file a petition under this section regardless of whether a finding of probable cause had been made in the case.
(c) The Commission will consider the petition and take whatever action it deems necessary or appropriate, as justice may require; except that the Commission will not, in any case, enforce an adjustment or settlement which is not in writing and signed by the party against whom enforcement is sought.
Citing Mechensky v. Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, 134 Pa.Cmwlth. 192, 578 A.2d 589 (1990), the Commission argues in its supplemental brief that under this regulation, while it may not have the power to enforce orders or consent orders, it has the power to enforce settlement agreements, including adjudicating the impossibility of performance or remedy, and its decision is only subject to our appellate review. In Me-chensky, this Court held that the Commission had authority to interpret and enforce contractual provisions contained in a settlement agreement based on Section 42.73 of the Special Rules to determine whether a respondent has complied with the terms of a settlement agreement and to take any action it deemed necessary. Making no reference to Section 10 of the Act, 43 P.S. § 960, we held that the Commission’s power could be inferred from Section 7(d) of the Act, 43 P.S. § 957(d), which gives the Commission the power to adopt, promulgate, amend and rescind rules and regulations to effectuate the Act, and from Section 9(c) of the Act, 43 P.S. § 959(c), which requires the Commission to attempt to eliminate a complained-of discriminatory practice by conference, conciliation and persuasion. We then went on to address defenses to the enforcement of the settlement order in our appellate jurisdiction.
We believe the dichotomy of allowing the Commission to enforce “settlement agreements” not reduced to “consent orders” or just plain “orders” is not a maintainable distinction. This dichotomy is not consistent with other provisions of the Act which require the Commission to seek a court order before it can compel anyone to do anything. See e.g., Section 7(g)(1) of the Act, 43 P.S. § 957(g)(1) (Commission may apply to any court for enforcement of subpoenas); and Section 9.2 of the Act, 43 P.S. § 959.2 (Commission may commence action in Commonwealth Court to seek injunctive relief.) Nothing in the overall statutory scheme allows the Commission to interpose itself as an adjudicator in the enforcement process and take away from the enforcing court the power to make its own independent factual determinations as to why the order should or should not be enforced. Clearly, the Commission does *1076not have the power to enforce orders or the power to impose any penalties for noncompliance with either a consent order or settlement agreement.6
The question then becomes what must one do to enforce a settlement agreement? Normally, a settlement agreement, not reduced to a consent order, is just another contract which is enforceable just as other contracts, i.e., with the filing of a civil action in the appropriate court of common pleas. If settlement agreements involving a dispute under the Human Relations Act would have to be enforced in this manner, though, it would place additional burdens on the parties, especially the party alleging some discriminatory practice because he is often unrepresented and, if represented, would bear the cost of enforcement. While that could be alleviated by reducing all settlement agreements to consent orders, that may frustrate the settlement of disputes because, unlike consent orders, settlements are generally private and do not subject the parties to the jurisdiction of the Commission.
Balancing those interests and recognizing the importance of settling disputes, yet realizing that those agreements had to be enforced, the Commission promulgated Section 42.73 of the Special Rules which, by operation of law, became part of the settlement agreement. While that provision does not give the Commission, as it now contends, the authority to enforce settlement agreements — because that would be in direct conflict with Section 10 of the Act — that section does provide a procedure by which the Commission can administratively decide whether it wants to aid in the enforcement of the settlement agreement. Once it determines in its administrative capacity (not as an adjudication)7 that the settlement agreement has not been satisfied, it can reduce the settlement order to a Commission order and then may file a petition with this Court in our original jurisdiction under Section 10 of the Act to enforce the settlement. This outcome allows orders, consent orders and settlement agreements to be enforced in the same manner.
Here, the parties entered into a Settlement Agreement without securing a consent order from the Commission. Because the terms of the Settlement Agreement were not satisfied, as Employer refused to return Complainant to work, Complainant filed a petition under Section 42.73 of the Special Rules seeking the Commission’s assistance in enforcing the Settlement Agreement, and the Commission administratively determined that the terms of the Settlement Agreement had not been satisfied. At that point, the Commission, in effect, made the Settlement Agreement a Commission order, and to enforce the or*1077der, it was required to bring a petition to enforce with this Court in our original jurisdiction.
Because courts only have the power to decide issues raised and do not have the power to impair contracts, and only courts have the power of compulsion over a person or entity in enforcing orders, consent orders or settlement decrees, I respectfully dissent.

. Act of October 27, 1955, P.L. 744, as amended, 43 P.S. §§ 951-963.

. Our scope of review of an adjudication by the Commission is to determine whether there was a violation of constitutional rights, an error of law, or whether findings of fact necessary to support the adjudication were supported by substantial evidence. Parks v. Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, 848 A.2d 204 (Pa.Cmwlth.2004).

.The rule in Pennsylvania regarding modification of a consent decree is similar in that "where a decree in equity is entered by consent of the parties it is binding upon the parties until they choose to amend it." Dravosburg Housing Association v. Dravosburg Borough, 71 Pa.Cmwlth. 144, 454 A.2d 1158, 1162 (1983). This differs from the rule in federal courts which permits modification of an equity decree entered by consent even if its terms do not provide for modification. Id. In Pennsylvania, a consent decree in an equity action is not considered a legal determination by the courts, but is an agreement between the parties. Felix v. Giuseppe Kitchens & Baths, Inc., 848 A.2d 943 (Pa.Super.2004).

. "Questions of jurisdiction can never be waived, and may be raised at any time by the parties or sua sponte by an appellate court.” Pennhurst Medical Group, P.C. v. Department of Public Welfare, 796 A.2d 423, 425 n. 2 (Pa.Cmwlth.2002), citing Commonwealth v. Little, 455 Pa. 163, 314 A.2d 270 (1974). See also West Mifflin Area School District v. Board of Property Assessment Appeals & Review, 844 A.2d 602 (Pa.Cmwlth.2004).

. Our scope of review of a Commission matter is whether the adjudication is in accordance with law, whether constitutional rights have been violated or whether the findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence. 2 Pa.C.S. § 704.

. Because an administrative agency only has those powers which the legislature has delegated to it, Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission v. St. Joe Minerals Corporation, Zinc Smelting Division, 476 Pa. 302, 382 A.2d 731 (1978), and Mechensky did not address the effect of Section 10 of the Act (as well as for the additional reasons stated), I would overrule Mechensky and other cases that have followed it, including News-Chronicle v. Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, 672 A.2d 400 (Pa.Cmwlth.1996).

. When the Commission decides to aid in enforcement, it is not an adjudication subject to appeal, but merely an administrative decision to bring an enforcement action. An "adjudication” is defined as "[a]ny final order, decree, decision, determination or ruling by an agency affecting personal or property rights, privileges, immunities, duties, liabilities or obligations of any or all of the parties to the proceeding in which the adjudication is made.” 1 Pa.C.S. § 101. The decision to bring an enforcement action does not affect any right that the party has because the rights have already been agreed to in the settlement agreement. All that is decided is that the agreement will now be enforced.