Full title: ELLISON BURNS, SR., Plaintiff, v. I.L.A. LOCAL 1414, Defendant
Court: United States District Court, S.D. Georgia, Savannah Division
Date published: Mar 11, 2009
Facts
Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure requires a court to enter summary judgment where the record, taken as a whole, establishes “that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c). “An issue of fact is `material’ if it might affect the outcome of the case under the governing law. . . . It is `genuine’ if the record taken as a whole could lead a rational trier of fact to find for the non-moving party.” Baker v. Sears, Roebuck Co., 903 F.2d 1515, 1518 (11th Cir. 1990) (citations omitted).
The moving party “always bears the initial responsibility of informing the [trial] court of the basis for its motion, and identifying those portions of [the record] which it believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact.” Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323 (1986). Once the movant has shown that the party bearing the burden of proof at trial lacks evidence on an essential element of his claim, the burden of production shifts to the nonmoving party “to go beyond the pleadings and by [his] own affidavits, or by the `depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file,’ designate `specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial.'” Id. at 324 (quoting Rule 56(e)).
Issue
Decision
Because Plaintiff Ellison Burns, Sr., has not brought forward any evidence raising an inference that the defendant intentionally discriminated against him based upon sex or race, the defendant International Longshoreman Association Local 1414’s motion for summary judgment should be GRANTED, and this case should be DISMISSED with prejudice.
Also, Read