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Paz v. Edison6/27/2000
Plaintiff, Michael Paz, appeals from the jury's verdict in favor of defendant, Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd). We affirm.
Plaintiff was an employee of ComEd when he was injured on the job . On August 16, 1989, a large piece of metal fell from an overhead crane and landed on the grate upon which plaintiff was standing. Plaintiff was thrown against a railing and struck on the knees by the piece of metal. During the next two years, plaintiff on occasion returned to work part time and performed light-duty tasks. Plaintiff was paid in excess of $51,000 in workers' compensation benefits during the period of his disability, and medical bills of almost $25,000 were also paid. Eventually, plaintiff and ComEd settled on total worker 's compensation benefits of $115,000, which was approved by the Industrial Commission. Plaintiff was examined by several doctors during this period, including his personal physician and a doctor employed by ComEd. Plaintiff's ability to work was often disputed by these doctors. Eventually, on the morning of November 7, 1991, plaintiff was examined by Dr. Fitzpatrick, who was employed by ComEd. The parties dispute whether Fitzpatrick at that time released plaintiff to work full time. Plaintiff did not report to work on November 7, and he was terminated that day.
Plaintiff filed suit, alleging retaliatory discharge, and his second amended complaint proceeded to a jury trial after the court denied motions for summary judgment and judgment on the pleadings. The jury returned a verdict in ComEd's favor. Plaintiff's posttrial motion was denied. This appeal followed.
Plaintiff first contends that he was entitled to summary judgment on the issue of liability. However, an order denying a motion for summary judgment is not reviewable after an evidentiary trial, as any error in the denial is merged in the subsequent trial. Contract Development Corp. v. Beck, 255 Ill. App. 3d 660, 664 (1994). Therefore, we will address this contention in the context of whether the jury's verdict was against the manifest weight of the evidence. A verdict is against the manifest weight of the evidence only where conclusions opposite those reached by the jury are clearly evident, plain, and undisputable. Moore v. Anchor Organization for Health Maintenance, 284 Ill. App. 3d 874, 880 (1996).
The general rule in Illinois is that an at-will employee may be discharged by the employer at any time and for any reason. Buckner v. Atlantic Plant Maintenance, Inc., 182 Ill. 2d 12, 17-18 (1998). (Although plaintiff herein was a union member, the union contract was not involved in this case and the plaintiff was an at-will employee for all relevant purposes in this litigation.) However, our supreme court recognized a limited exception to this rule in Kelsay v. Motorola, Inc., 74 Ill. 2d 172 (1978), when it determined that a plaintiff who was terminated for pursuing workers' compensation benefits could bring an action for retaliatory discharge against the former employer. See Buckner, 182 Ill. 2d at 18. The supreme court has deflected many attempts to expand this tort and has maintained retaliatory discharge as a limited and narrow exception to the general rule of at-will discharges. See Buckner, 182 Ill. 2d at 18-20. To state a cause of action for retaliatory discharge, a claimant must allege that (1) he was an employee of the defendant before or at the time of the injury; (2) he exercised some right granted by the Workers' Compensation Act (Act) (820 ILCS 305/1 et seq. (West 1996)); and (3) his discharge was causally related to the exercise of that right under the Act. Clark v. Owens-Brockway Glass Container, Inc., 297 Ill. App 3d 694, 697 (1998). The element of causation is not met if the
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