Phillips v. Kiepper
Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York; February 17, 1997; New York; State Appellate Court
A proceeding was initiated under CPLR article 78 to challenge the termination of a probationary bus operator's employment by the New York City Transit Authority on May 8, 1995. The petitioner appealed a Supreme Court, Kings County judgment dated January 22, 1996, which denied the petition and dismissed the case. The appellate court affirmed the judgment with costs, stating that probationary employees can be terminated without a hearing or a statement of reasons unless the termination is shown to be for an unconstitutional reason, in bad faith, or in violation of law. The petitioner had the burden of proof to demonstrate that the dismissal was improper but failed to do so. The court found that the termination was based on unsatisfactory performance. The appellate court also reviewed and dismissed the petitioner's additional arguments as lacking merit. Judges Rosenblatt, Ritter, Copertino, and Krausman concurred in the decision.