Summary
finding that an employee waived her right to sue under a federal employment statute where the settlement agreement, entered into knowingly and voluntarily, provided that the employee "releas[ed] and forever discharg[ed] [employer] for any and all claims [arising out of her complaint] without limitation . . . including . . . a release and discharge for any potential and/or actual liability for causes of action [under]" various laws, including a federal employment statute
Summary of this case from Galera v. JohannsOpinion
No. 06-1767.
October 12, 2007.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, Jaime Pieras, Jr., U.S. Senior District Judge.
Rafael A. Oliveras López de Victoria, on brief, for appellant.
Johanna M. Emmanuelli-Huertas and Law Offices of Pedro E. Ortiz Alvarez, on brief, for appellees.
Plaintiff-appellant Ana I. Rivera-Olmo appeals the dismissal of her action against her now former employer, defendant-appellee Puerto Rico's State Insurance Fund Corporation ("SIFC"). Rivera-Olmo alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101- 12213 (2006); Law 44 of July 2, 1985, as amended, P.R. Laws Ann. tit. 1, §§ 501 et seq. (Puerto Rico's Law on Discrimination Against People with Physical and/or Mental Disabilities); and Article 1802 of the Puerto Rico Civil Code, P.R. Laws Ann. tit. 31, § 5141 (a claim for negligence).
The district court dismissed her claims with prejudice, finding that they were barred by a settlement agreement that resolved a previous suit brought by Rivera-Olmo against SIFC. The court also dismissed with prejudice the claims for enforcement of the settlement agreement for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. Rivera-Olmo now appeals. We affirm.
The allegations of the complaint concern a settlement agreement between SIFC and Rivera-Olmo resulting from a suit that Rivera-Olmo filed in 1999 for violations of the ADA, Law 44, and Article 1802. The parties entered negotiations to settle shortly before trial in November 2001. A dispute arose about whether Rivera-Olmo had agreed to the settlement, and the district court held an evidentiary hearing on that question in February 2002. The court determined that Rivera-Olmo was bound by the agreement and dismissed the complaint with prejudice in April 2002.
Rivera-Olmo filed the instant complaint in July 2005, claiming that SIFC had failed to adhere to the terms of the settlement agreement in numerous ways, and that these failures constituted violations of the ADA, Law 44, and Article 1802. Rivera-Olmo also alleged additional or ongoing violations of the ADA and Law 44, based on conduct by SIFC and Rivera-Olmo's supervisors that occurred after the settlement agreement.
Until the filing of