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Schell v. Baker Furniture Co.3/16/2000
Chief Justice Elizabeth A. Weaver
The plaintiffs sued the defendant employer, alleging sexual harassment in the workplace. However, the circuit court dismissed the cases because the plaintiffs failed to appear personally at a settlement conference. The Court of Appeals reversed the dismissals, and remanded the cases for further proceedings. For the reasons stated below, we affirm the judgment of the Court of Appeals.
I.
Plaintiff Ronda Schell was an employee of defendant Baker Furniture Company. She explains that she worked primarily "in its so-called `rubbing' department where final finishing of furniture is done." Plaintiff Sandra Collins also worked at Baker Furniture; she states that she was "employed in various production work capacities."
In March 1994, Ms. Schell sued Baker Furniture, alleging that she had been harassed by a fellow employee who was "constantly, without either invitation or provocation, addressing the plaintiff by profane and abusive names and descriptions in the feminine gender to an extent that repeatedly reduced the plaintiff to tears and extreme emotional disturbance." She further alleged that her requests for help from the employer resulted in her being wrongfully discharged. Her complaint sought monetary damages, presumably reflecting lost wages and other harm.
Two weeks after Ms. Schell filed her complaint, Ms. Collins sued Baker Furniture. Ms. Collins alleged that she "was constantly addressed by obscene names and adjectives to the point of being reduced to tears and near hysteria." She too sought monetary damages.
The plaintiffs were represented by the same attorney, but the suits were assigned to different judges of the Kent Circuit Court.
Each case proceeded through discovery and pretrial motion practice: The plaintiffs were deposed; motions for summary disposition were argued and decided; scheduling conferences were held.
In Collins, the circuit court conducted a settlement conference in June 1995. Agreement was not reached, however, so the court set an April 1996 trial date. Such a settlement conference took place in July 1995 in Schell, with the court scheduling a June 1996 trial.
In January 1996, the chief judge of the Kent Circuit Court sent out notices regarding a "settlement week conference." The parties were told in Schell that a ninety-minute conference would occur on the afternoon of Monday, March 11, 1996. A similar conference would take place in Collins on the morning of Tuesday, March 12, 1996. Each notice stated these conditions:
1. Counsel and/or the parties shall be prepared to negotiate in good faith effort to reach a fair and reasonable settlement.
2. Clients and persons with authority to settle shall be present at the settlement conference.
3. The parties shall submit a joint settlement conference statement (see attached form), setting forth both the undisputed and disputed facts and issues of the case. The joint settlement conference statements shall be filed with the Court Administrator's office by February 26, 1996. In addition, the parties shall submit a copy of the mediation summary and evaluation under MCR 2.403 at the same time and place as the joint settlement conference statement, if mediation has been held.
4. Failure to prepare for, attend, or meaningfully participate in this settlement conference may result in the imposition of sanctions.
5. The parties and counsel shall advise the Assignment Clerk's office of any attorneys of record whose names do not appear on this order.
6. Settlement conferences shall not be adjourned except f
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