Chadwick v. WellPoint, Inc.

561 F.3d 38 (2009)

From our private database of 46,500+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Chadwick v. WellPoint, Inc.

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
561 F.3d 38 (2009)

SC

Facts

Laurie Chadwick (plaintiff) worked for WellPoint, Inc. (defendant). Chadwick had four children under the age of 12 and was attending a class at the University of Southern Maine. Chadwick’s husband was the primary caretaker of the children while Chadwick worked. Chadwick had been in her position at WellPoint for seven years. In 2005, Chadwick received an excellent performance review. Chadwick’s supervisor encouraged her to apply for an open management position. In fact, Chadwick was already doing much of the work required of the manager position. Chadwick interviewed for the position, but WellPoint offered the promotion to Donna Ouelette. Ouelette had been in the same position as Chadwick, although she had only been in that position for about one year. Ouelette scored lower on her 2005 performance review than did Chadwick. After Chadwick did not receive the promotion, the hiring supervisor told Chadwick, “It was nothing you did or didn’t do. It was just that you’re going to school, you have the kids and you just have a lot on your plate right now.” The hiring supervisor also stated that if the other interviewees were in Chadwick’s position, they would feel overwhelmed. Chadwick sued WellPoint for sex-based discrimination, claiming that WellPoint hired Ouelette because of the stereotype that mothers of young children neglect their work in favor of their family responsibilities. The district court granted WellPoint summary judgment. Chadwick appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Stahl, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 832,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,500 briefs - keyed to 994 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership