Raymond Richards v. United Parcel Service, Inc.
Opinion
Trial Court Opinion
I. Factual and Procedural Background
On February 19, 2020, Plaintiff filed a Complaint against UPS and Walton (collectively, “Defendants”) in Santa Barbara Superior Court, alleging causes of action for: (1) retaliation in violation of California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”) against UPS; and (2) wrongful termination in violation of public policy against UPS and Walton. In his Complaint, Plaintiff alleges that he was terminated by UPS on February 21, 2019 after 24 years of employment because he had assisted two other UPS employees with reporting their sexual and gender harassment and discrimination complaints to the appropriate supervisory and human resource personnel. On March 25, 2020, UPS filed a Notice of Removal, alleging that this Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a). With respect to diversity of citizenship, UPS alleges that there is complete diversity between Plaintiff, a citizen of California, and UPS, a citizen of Ohio and Georgia, and that Walton, a citizen of California, is a “sham defendant” who was joined to defeat diversity.