Reynolds v. Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc.

Bethany Reynolds (plaintiff) worked for Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. (Ethicon) (defendant) as a bariatric-account manager based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. In mid-2002, Ethicon reviewed a report ranking 210 United States markets by business potential. Sioux Falls ranked 120—the lowest market with a bariatric-account manager. Based on the report, Ethicon decided to eliminate the Sioux Falls position and reassign it to Louisville, Kentucky. On September 4, Reynolds learned she was pregnant and told her supervisor, Dave Burns (defendant), who congratulated her but suggested keeping the information private. Burns then advanced a scheduled performance review to September 11, at which time he informed Reynolds that her territory was being eliminated and offered her the choice of transferring to Louisville or accepting severance. She was given until September 20 to decide. Reynolds initially declined to decide until after her baby was born but suffered a miscarriage in late September. In October, Ethicon extended Reynolds’s decision deadline, but Reynolds ultimately refused to relocate and was terminated on November 28. Reynolds sued Ethicon and Burns, alleging, among other claims, intentional infliction of emotional distress. She asserted that the elimination of her position and the manner of notification—specifically allowing her to believe the meeting was for a performance review—caused her miscarriage and subsequent depression. The district court granted summary judgment to Ethicon and Burns. Reynolds appealed.