Iglesias v. Mutual Life
Case Date: 09/17/1998
Court: United States Court of Appeals
Docket No: 97-1648
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For the First Circuit No. 97-1648 MANUEL A. IGLESIAS, Plaintiff, Appellant, v. MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK, Defendant, Appellee. ____________________ No. 97-1649 MANUEL A. IGLESIAS, Plaintiff, Appellee, v. MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NEW YORK, Defendant, Appellant. APPEALS FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO [Hon. Raymond L. Acosta, Senior U.S. District Judge] Before Torruella, Chief Judge, Campbell, Senior Circuit Judge, and Stahl, Circuit Judge. Charles S. Hey-Maestre, with whom Adalina deJesus-Morales was on brief for Manuel A. Iglesias. Roberto O. Maldonado-Nieves, was on brief for Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York. September 17, 1998 CAMPBELL, Senior Circuit Judge. Manuel A. Iglesias appeals from the district court's grant of summary judgment on his discrimination and contract claims against his former employer, Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York ("MONY"). MONY appeals from the court's dismissal of its counterclaim for restitution of money that Iglesias obtained by submitting admittedly overstated expense reports. We affirm the judgment for MONY against Iglesias. We vacate the order dismissing MONY's counterclaim and remand the counterclaim with directions to dismiss the counterclaim without prejudice for want of jurisdiction. I. Iglesias's Claims. We review a grant of summary judgment de novo, taking the facts in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. See One Nat'l Bank v. Antonellis, 80 F.3d 606, 608 (1st Cir. 1996). After considering the record, briefs, and oral arguments, we affirm the dismissal of Iglesias's discrimination and contract claims substantially for the reasons stated in the district court's memoranda and orders. We add only the following short discussion. Regarding Iglesias's discrimination claims, Iglesias received clear and unequivocal notice that he was terminated as MONY's San Jose Agency Manager on February 9, 1989, at the latest. On that date, MONY sent him a letter informing him that he would no longer be authorized to act as Agency Manager. In the context of the parties' prior discussions regarding Iglesias's retirement, the February 1989 letter put Iglesias on notice that he had been fired. Iglesias did not file administrative charges with the Anti-Discrimination Division of the Puerto Rico Department of Labor until August 28, 1990, and his initial complaint in federal court was not filed until April 17, 1991. Iglesias's action for discrimination was, therefore, barred by the applicable statutes of limitations. See 42 U.S.C. 2000e-5(e) (establishing a 300-day limitation period for actions under Title VII that were first presented to an administrative agency); 29 U.S.C. 626(d)(2) (setting a 300-day limitation period for actions under the ADEA that were first brought before a state authority); Olmo v. Young & Rubicam, 110 D.P.R. 740, 745 (P.R. 1981) (applying a one year limitation period to claims brought under Law 100). The Puerto Rico Supreme Court's decision in V |