Rennae Ott v. Maryland Dept of Public Safety , 909 F.3d 655 ( 2018 )


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  •                                       PUBLISHED
    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
    No. 17-2047
    RENNAE ELIZABETH OTT,
    Plaintiff - Appellant,
    v.
    MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONAL
    SERVICES,
    Defendant - Appellee.
    Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, at Baltimore.
    Richard D. Bennett, District Judge. (1:16-cv-03394-RDB)
    Argued: September 27, 2018                                Decided: November 28, 2018
    Before AGEE and FLOYD, Circuit Judges, and John A. GIBNEY, Jr., United States
    District Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia, sitting by designation.
    Affirmed by published opinion. Judge Gibney wrote the opinion, in which Judge Agee
    and Judge Floyd joined.
    ARGUED: Robin Ringgold Cockey, COCKEY, BRENNAN & MALONEY, PC,
    Salisbury, Maryland, for Appellant. Lisa O’Mara Arnquist, OFFICE OF THE
    ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MARYLAND, Towson, Maryland, for Appellee. ON
    BRIEF: Ashley A. Bosché, COCKEY, BRENNAN & MALONEY, PC, Salisbury,
    Maryland, for Appellant. Brian E. Frosh, Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE
    ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MARYLAND, Towson, Maryland, for Appellee.
    GIBNEY, District Judge:
    Rennae Elizabeth Ott asks us to determine the statute of limitations for claims she
    brought against Maryland’s Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services
    (“DPSCS” or “Department”) pursuant to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“Rehabilitation
    Act”). Because the Rehabilitation Act does not contain a limitations period, we borrow the
    time limit from the most analogous state law claim. In the past, courts have applied
    Maryland’s three-year general limitation for civil cases to claims under the Rehabilitation
    Act. We, however, have not addressed this question since Maryland amended its Fair
    Employment Practices Act (“MFEPA”) to align more closely with the Rehabilitation Act.
    We now find that the amended MFEPA qualifies as the most analogous Maryland law to
    the Rehabilitation Act. The MFEPA’s two-year statute of limitations applies and bars Ott’s
    claims.
    To avoid this result, Ott invokes the doctrine of equitable tolling. Unfortunately,
    she does not meet the doctrine’s exacting standard, and cannot avoid the bar.
    For these reasons, we affirm the district court’s dismissal of Ott’s Rehabilitation Act
    claims.
    I.
    Ott worked for DPSCS as a parole officer. In 2010, she learned that a pediatrician
    had molested her daughter, causing Ott to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (“PTSD”)
    and severe anxiety. Her difficulties forced her to take medical leave and to transfer to a
    different location.
    2
    Ott says that one of her co-workers learned of the molestation and began to harass
    Ott about her daughter and Ott’s mental health. The harassment continued for a year and
    took various forms, all ignored by the Department. Ott’s PTSD and anxiety worsened, her
    performance deteriorated, and DPSCS forced her to resign on March 6, 2014.
    While still employed, Ott filed a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment
    Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”). Ott’s charge proceeded slowly through the EEOC,
    but eventually the agency found reasonable cause for Ott’s claims and referred them to the
    Department of Justice (“DOJ”). On July 26, 2016, the DOJ issued Ott a right to sue notice.
    Ott filed her complaint in this case on October 10, 2016, asserting claims arising
    under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and Rehabilitation Act. 1 The district
    court applied the MFEPA’s two-year statute of limitations to Ott’s Rehabilitation Act
    claims and refused to toll her time to sue. 2 The court dismissed her complaint, and this
    appeal followed.
    II.
    We review de novo dismissals pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6).
    Walters v. McMahen, 
    684 F.3d 435
    , 439 (4th Cir. 2012). To survive a 12(b)(6) motion, a
    1
    Ott’s ADA claims required administrative exhaustion, 
    42 U.S.C. § 12117
    , but her
    Rehabilitation Act claims did not, 
    29 U.S.C. § 794
    (a). Ott chose to defer filing her
    Rehabilitation Act claims until the EEOC’s administrative process as to her ADA claims
    concluded.
    2
    After Ott conceded that sovereign immunity barred her ADA claims, the district
    court dismissed them. This appeal does not concern the ADA claims.
    3
    complaint must contain enough facts “‘to raise a right to relief above the speculative level’
    and ‘state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.’” Occupy Columbia v. Haley, 
    738 F.3d 107
    , 116 (4th Cir. 2013) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 
    550 U.S. 544
    , 555, 570
    (2007)). A court may dismiss a complaint on statute of limitations grounds “if the time bar
    is apparent on the face of the complaint.” Dean v. Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., 
    395 F.3d 471
    ,
    474 (4th Cir. 2005).
    While we typically review a district court’s equitable tolling decision for abuse of
    discretion, we review de novo when the court denied equitable tolling as a matter of law.
    Cruz v. Maypa, 
    773 F.3d 138
    , 143 (4th Cir. 2014). In this case, the district court’s decision
    turned on a question of law—whether undisputed facts excused Ott’s failure to bring a
    timely claim—so we review the tolling decision de novo. See 
    id.
    A.
    Ott argues that Maryland’s general three-year statute of limitations governing civil
    actions applies to her Rehabilitation Act claims.        When a federal statute, like the
    Rehabilitation Act, does not set forth a statute of limitations, federal courts “borrow the
    state statute of limitations that applies to the most analogous state-law claim.” Semenova
    v. Md. Transit Admin., 
    845 F.3d 564
    , 567 (4th Cir. 2017). Federal district courts should
    borrow the limitations period from the state in which the district court sits, Almond v. Kent,
    
    459 F.2d 200
    , 203 (4th Cir. 1972), as long as doing so “is not inconsistent with federal law
    or policy.” McCullough v. Branch Banking & Tr. Co., 
    35 F.3d 127
    , 129 (4th Cir. 1994)
    (quoting Wilson v. Garcia, 
    471 U.S. 261
    , 266–67 (1985)).
    4
    Here, we must determine which Maryland statute is most analogous to Ott’s
    Rehabilitation Act claims. The state statute “need not be identical” to the Rehabilitation
    Act, but it must provide essentially “the same rights and remedies.” Semenova, 845 F.3d
    at 567 (quoting Wolsky v. Med. Coll. of Hampton Rds., 
    1 F.3d 222
    , 224–25 (4th Cir. 1993)).
    We consider whether the state law prohibits the same type of discrimination as the federal
    law, tracks the federal law’s language, and requires the state to promulgate regulations
    consistent with the federal law. 
    Id.
    The Rehabilitation Act protects against and provides redress for employment
    discrimination based on disability. McCullough, 
    35 F.3d at 130
    . Although we have not
    reviewed the revised MFEPA to determine whether it provides the statute of limitations for
    Rehabilitation Act cases, we have considered similar statutes in Virginia and North
    Carolina. The Virginia Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (“Virginia Act”) prohibits
    disability discrimination in programs receiving state funding, so we found it “almost
    identical to the Rehabilitation Act.” Wolsky, 
    1 F.3d at 224
    . Virginia “seemingly intended
    its legislation to track the federal [Rehabilitation] Act and provide its citizens with the same
    rights and remedies.” 
    Id.
    Similarly, we deemed the North Carolina Persons With Disabilities Protection Act 3
    (“North Carolina Act”) analogous to the Rehabilitation Act. McCullough, 
    35 F.3d at 130
    .
    Like the Rehabilitation Act, the North Carolina Act protects a “very specific group of
    3
    After we issued McCullough, the legislature changed the law’s name from the
    “North Carolina Handicapped Persons Act.”
    5
    persons” from employment discrimination. 
    Id. at 132
    . We found that the North Carolina
    legislature intended the Act “as a state counterpart to the Rehabilitation Act.” 
    Id. at 130
    .
    Finding the state laws analogous to the Rehabilitation Act, we elected to apply their
    limitations periods instead of the states’ general personal injury time limits. McCullough,
    
    35 F.3d at 130
    ; Wolsky, 
    1 F.3d at 224
    .
    In contrast, in the past, Maryland had no analogue to the Rehabilitation Act, so we
    applied Maryland’s general civil three-year statute of limitations to Rehabilitation Act
    claims. Jeandron v. Bd. of Regents, 510 F. App’x 223, 226 (4th Cir. 2013) (unpublished
    table decision). Amendments to the MFEPA, however, now make it an appropriate
    analogous statute to provide the statute of limitations for Rehabilitation Act claims. 4
    We start with an enactment in 2007. At that time, the Maryland legislature added
    to the MFEPA a private right of action for employment discrimination based on disability.
    H.B. 1034, 2006 Leg., 421st Sess. (Md. 2006) (codified as amended at Md. Code Ann.,
    State Gov’t § 20-1013). Then, in 2009, the legislature expanded rights for persons with
    disabilities by adding provisions to the MFEPA that mirror the ADA. The revised law
    expands the definition of “disability,” requires reasonable workplace accommodations for
    disabilities, and prohibits employers from retaliating against employees for opposing
    discriminatory conduct. H.B. 393, 2009 Leg., 426th Sess. (Md. 2009) (codified at State
    4
    Although our unpublished decision in Jeandron came after the amendments to the
    MFEPA, that case concerned events that occurred before Maryland expanded the MFEPA.
    Id. at 224–25.
    6
    Gov’t §§ 20-601(b)(1), 20-606(a)(4), (f)). The MFEPA allows a complainant to bring a
    civil action alleging an unlawful employment practice within two years after the alleged
    practice occurred. 5 State Gov’t § 20-1013(a)(3).
    Recently, we examined the MFEPA amendments in an ADA case involving a
    commuter bus. 6 Semenova, 845 F.3d at 566. We decided that the MFEPA was not
    analogous to the ADA in that context because the MFEPA amendments did not expand
    rights for individuals who suffered disability discrimination in public services. Id. at 567–
    68. We noted, however, that the amended MFEPA created a cause of action for disability
    discrimination in the employment context. Id. at 568.
    Unlike the plaintiff in Semenova, Ott alleges employment disability discrimination
    under the Rehabilitation Act. The MFEPA, as amended in 2007 and 2009, provides a right
    of action for the employment practices Ott cites in her complaint, including retaliation and
    failure to accommodate. See State Gov’t § 20-1013. Like the North Carolina and Virginia
    Acts, the revised MFEPA and the Rehabilitation Act “redress discrimination against the
    same very specific group of persons,” McCullough, 
    35 F.3d at 132
    , and provide “the same
    rights and remedies,” Wolsky, 
    1 F.3d at 224
    . Any minor differences between the two laws
    do not “magically tip the balance of similarities” against applying the MFEPA.
    5
    Maryland courts characterize the two-year requirement as a statute of limitations,
    not a condition precedent, as Ott argues. E.g., Wonasue v. Univ. of Md. Alumni Ass’n, 
    295 F.R.D. 104
    , 110 (D. Md. 2013); A.C. v. Md. Comm’n on Civil Rights, 
    158 A.3d 1140
    , 1147
    (Md. 2017).
    6
    Because the Rehabilitation Act and the ADA lack statutes of limitations and have
    “substantially similar language,” we apply the same borrowing analysis to both. Semenova,
    845 F.3d at 567.
    7
    McCullough, 
    35 F.3d at 132
    . Finally, we see no reason why using the two-year period,
    which exceeds the 180-day period we applied in North Carolina and the one-year period
    we applied in Virginia, would not comport with federal law or policy. See 
    id. at 131
    ;
    Wolsky, 
    1 F.3d at 224
    .
    The MFEPA, therefore, is the most analogous Maryland cause of action to Ott’s
    Rehabilitation Act claims, and its two-year statute of limitations governs her case. Ott’s
    allegations of wrongful conduct end with her resignation on March 6, 2014. She filed her
    complaint on October 10, 2016, outside the two-year period. Accordingly, the district court
    properly dismissed Ott’s Rehabilitation Act claims as time-barred.
    B.
    Ott further argues that if a two-year statute of limitations governs her claims, we
    should apply equitable tolling to save them from dismissal. The discretionary equitable
    tolling doctrine applies when (1) a defendant wrongfully prevents a plaintiff from asserting
    her claims, or (2) extraordinary circumstances beyond the plaintiff’s control prevent her
    from filing on time. Harris v. Hutchinson, 
    209 F.3d 325
    , 330 (4th Cir. 2000). We apply
    the doctrine infrequently, so that “individualized hardship” and “subjective notions of fair
    accommodation” do not “supplant the rules of clearly drafted statutes.” 
    Id.
     In other words,
    equitable tolling “must be reserved for those rare instances where—due to circumstances
    external to the party’s own conduct—it would be unconscionable to enforce the limitation
    period against the party and gross injustice would result.” 
    Id.
    8
    This is not one of those cases. Ott claims that she did not, and could not, know that
    the MFEPA would supply the statute of limitations for her claims. As we have explained,
    the 2007 and 2009 amendments brought the MFEPA squarely within the realm of Wolsky
    and McCullough. In any event, a party’s “misconception about the operation of the statute
    of limitations is neither extraordinary nor a circumstance external to [her] control.” United
    States v. Sosa, 
    364 F.3d 507
    , 512 (4th Cir. 2004). Ignorance of the law does not justify
    tolling, even when a party does not have legal representation. 
    Id.
     Similarly, an attorney’s
    mistake in interpreting a statute does not amount to an extraordinary circumstance. 7
    Harris, 
    209 F.3d at 330
    .
    Ott further argues that DPSCS caused the delay by withholding its sovereign
    immunity defense to her ADA claims during the administrative process. Believing DPSCS
    would consent to suit, Ott waited for a right to sue letter. Under these circumstances, we
    do not find it “unconscionable to enforce the limitation period.” Harris, 
    209 F.3d at 330
    .
    Ott could have timely filed her Rehabilitation Act claims without completing the
    administrative process as to her ADA claims; the Rehabilitation Act does not require
    exhaustion of administrative remedies prior to filing suit.
    In sum, Ott fails to meet the high bar for equitable tolling. The district court did not
    err by declining to apply equitable tolling to her case.
    7
    Ott also alleges that her PTSD and anxiety prevented her from timely filing. To
    invoke tolling on these grounds, she must show that she suffered from a “profound mental
    incapacity.” Sosa, 
    364 F.3d at 513
    . She has not made this showing. See 
    id.
    9
    III.
    Although we find the facts in this case disturbing and sympathize with Ott’s
    circumstances, the district court correctly dismissed her Rehabilitation Act claims. We
    affirm the district court’s application of the MFEPA’s two-year statute of limitations and
    its denial of equitable tolling.
    AFFIRMED
    10