Paul v. Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Docket: No. 08-1472-cv
Court: Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit; May 5, 2009; Federal Appellate Court
Newton Paul appeals a summary judgment order from the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, which favored Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Paul, a black man of Haitian descent, worked for Wyeth from 2000 until September 2005 and alleged claims including hostile work environment, constructive discharge, failure to promote, and disparate pay. The district court granted Wyeth's motion for summary judgment on all claims, and Paul appeals only the dismissal of his failure to promote claim. Paul asserts that despite receiving several promotions and salary increases from 2000 to 2003, he was passed over for five job opportunities between May and September 2005, all filled by white candidates. The district court applied the McDonnell Douglas burden-shifting framework, assuming Paul established a prima facie case. At the second stage, it found Wyeth provided legitimate, non-discriminatory reasons for not promoting Paul. At the third stage, the court concluded that Paul failed to demonstrate that these reasons were a pretext for discrimination. A de novo review confirmed the district court's ruling. Paul’s evidence was insufficient to suggest that Wyeth's decisions were motivated by discrimination, consisting mainly of a single instance of a racially suggestive term used by a superior who was not involved in the hiring decisions. The court found no merit in Paul's remaining arguments and affirmed the district court's judgment.