Wakefield v. Northern Telecom, Inc.

769 F.2d 109 (1985)

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Wakefield v. Northern Telecom, Inc.

United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
769 F.2d 109 (1985)

Facts

Wilfred Wakefield (plaintiff) was employed as a telephone-equipment salesperson by Danray, Inc., beginning in 1975. Sales commissions were governed by a sales-incentive plan that provided that in order to receive commissions, the participant must be an active employee on the date that the compensation was to be paid. In January 1978, Northern Telecom, Inc. (NTI) (defendant) acquired Danray and adopted the sales-incentive plan. In October 1979, NTI terminated 57 employees, including Wakefield. Wakefield sued NTI for breach of contract, asserting that NTI terminated him specifically to avoid paying him commissions under the sales-incentive plan and that he should be paid for those sales. Wakefield argued that NTI violated an implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. At trial, the jury instruction on the implied-duty-of-good-faith-and-fair-dealing claim included generalized wrongful-discharge concepts. The jury returned a verdict in Wakefield’s favor, and NTI appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Winter, J.)

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