CLARKSBURG – A lawsuit against Bob Evans Farms for wrongful termination has been removed to federal court.
The plaintiff is a resident of Harrison County and Bob Evans Farms’ principal office is in New Albany, Ohio, according to the Dec. 17 notice of removal.
Complete diversity of citizenship exists between the plaintiff and the defendant, the notice of removal states.
“Although the complaint does not demand a specific amount of damages, the court ‘may look to the entire record before it and make an independent evaluation as to whether or not the jurisdictional amount’ is satisfied,” the notice states.
Here it is apparent that the specific amount in controversy exceeds $75,000, even though the complaint does not demand a specific amount of damages, according to the notice.
Rick A. Kirkpatrick was hired by Bob Evans Farms in 1983 and remained with the company for 32 years, working his way up to a management position, according to a complaint filed Sept. 21 in Monongalia Circuit Court.
Kirkpatrick claims throughout his employment, he was a satisfactory employee and in early April, the defendant sent him to Baltimore, Md., to train for a high-level management position within the company.
On April 16, upon returning from his training, Kirkpatrick was confronted by his immediate supervisor, Robert Arbuckle, who accused him of failing to adhere to the company's mandatory drug testing policy and accused him of not having an employee tested on an earlier occasions for suspicion of drug use, according to the suit.
Kirkpatrick claims he denied ever having failed to follow the company's drug policy and specifically told Arbuckle that he had not been present when they employee's alleged drug violation and he did not have a reasonable suspicion upon which to require testing of the employee.
The defendant terminated Kirkpatrick for allegedly failing to have employees tested under the company's mandatory drug testing policy, according to the suit.
Kirkpatrick claims the defendant violated West Virginia Public Policy and caused him t suffer loss of pay, physical pain, emotional pain, suffering, inconvenience, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life and other non-pecuniary losses.
Kirkpatrick is seeking compensatory and punitive damages. He is being represented by Stephen B. Farmer and Matthew H. Nelson of Farmer Cline & Campbell PLLC.
Bob Evans Farms is represented by Ashley Hardesty Odell and Justin Harrison of Bowles Rice LLP.
The case is assigned to District Judge Frederick P. Stamp Jr.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia: 1:15-cv-00233