Portland office managing partner Julie Haddon and associate David Merryman secured a dismissal with prejudice in an executive employment case pending in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon. The plaintiff, formerly a Senior Vice President at a nutraceutical manufacturer, sought $300,000 from his former employer.
The plaintiff alleged that the nutraceutical manufacturer had failed to honor a promise of a guaranteed 18-month employment term. The company had offered him an 18-month term, but the offer was conditioned on the completion of an acquisition which later fell through. He argued that the company had defrauded him by representing that the deal was complete, or waived the condition, by employing him before the transaction was finalized and after the deal fell through.
Magistrate Judge Stacie Beckerman thrice granted the employer's motions to dismiss, holding each time that the facts the former employee alleged did not state a claim under any legal theory. The third time, Judge Beckerman dismissed with prejudice.