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Lim v. Prudential Insurance Co. of America9/14/2005
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
Sally-Jane Lim, a life insurance salesperson, filed this action against her former employer, The Prudential Insurance Company of America, and her former supervisor, Anita Hsiao, after Prudential terminated her employment and reported the termination to the National Association of Securities Dealers using a Form U-5 (Uniform Termination Notice for Securities Industry Regulation) signed by Hsiao. Lim asserted a cause of action against Prudential for wrongful termination in violation of public policy, and a cause of action against both Prudential and Hsiao for defamation. Lim appeals from a judgment entered after the trial court granted summary judgment in favor of Prudential and Hsiao. Finding no triable issue of material fact as to either cause of action, we affirm the judgment.
FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS BELOW
Lim had a successful career as a life insurance salesperson in the Philippines before she moved to the United States in 1990. She came to this country to work for Prudential as a sales representative in its Los Angeles District Office. In February 1991, about five months after she joined Prudential, Lim was transferred to Prudential's Monterey Park Office. Defendant Anita Hsiao, the Managing Director of the Monterey Park Office, became Lim's immediate supervisor.
In November 1998, Prudential terminated Lim's employment. Lim claims Hsiao was "professionally jealous" of her and the termination was motivated by Hsiao's desire to deprive her of "substantial" commissions she had earned. According to Prudential, Lim was insubordinate and violated company policies and that was the reason for her termination. We describe the circumstances leading up to Lim's termination based on the undisputed facts and evidence in the record.
At all times relevant to the present matter, Prudential had a policy in place which instructed its sales representatives: " o not solicit business in person, write applications or perform any other functions in connection with securing insurance while you are visiting in a foreign country."
On or about May 25, 1998, Lim wrote a memo to two senior underwriters at Prudential, informing them she had taken a trip to her "home-country [the Philippines] after 7 years of absence with the primary purpose of revisiting at least three of great family accounts to review and upgrade their insurance programs." During the trip, she visited members of the Lim family, whom she described as " ure clients," not friends or relatives. Lim wrote in her memo: "During my fact-finding interview with my original client, Petrona Lim, I observed the photographs of her 5 lovely grandchildren prominently displayed in her desk. I therefore offered to insure the grandchildren . . ." All five grandchildren were born and still lived in the Philippines. Lim admitted she knew at the time she took the trip she was not supposed to solicit insurance in the Philippines.
Lim submitted "prepaid" applications (meaning the applicants prepaid the premiums) for Petrona's five grandchildren. Each applied for insurance in an amount exceeding $1,000,000 (ranging from $1,007,257 to $1,020,000). At the time Lim accepted these prepaid applications, she was aware Prudential had a policy prohibiting its sales representatives from accepting prepaid applications above $1,000,000. Lim had read the particular policy.
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