Na'Quan Thomas v. Solera Senior Living, LLC, et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania screened Na’Quan Thomas’s amended in forma pauperis complaint against Solera Senior Living, LLC. The court allowed Thomas’s Title VII and 42 U.S.C. § 1981 retaliation claims to proceed to service, while dismissing his remaining claims and defendants with prejudice, including claims for wrongful termination, failure to investigate, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and defamation.

Holdings

1. Thomas alleges sufficient facts — protected activity (reporting racial discrimination), adverse employment actions (suspension and termination), and causal connection — to state a plausible retaliation claim under Title VII, which will proceed to service.
2. Section 1981 claims are subject to the same analytical framework as Title VII but are limited to challenging private acts of race discrimination in connection with making and enforcing contracts, including interference with at-will employment. Thomas's allegations of retaliation for reporting racial discrimination in connection with his at-will employment state a plausible § 1981 claim.
3. Allegations of racial discrimination, retaliation, and mishandling of an HR complaint do not constitute the extreme and outrageous conduct required to state an IIED claim under Pennsylvania law. The IIED claim is dismissed with prejudice.
4. The reasserted Pennsylvania common law wrongful termination claim and negligent and willful failure to investigate claim are dismissed with prejudice again for the reasons stated in the Court's earlier Memorandum.

Questions Presented

1. Whether plaintiff states plausible retaliation claims under Title VII and 42 U.S.C. § 1981
2. Whether plaintiff states a plausible claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress under Pennsylvania law
3. Whether reasserted claims previously dismissed with prejudice should be dismissed again
4. Whether declaratory relief is available to adjudicate past conduct

Disposition

dismissed