{ "id": 4240353, "name": "MELISSA GALETTI, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. DERRAL W. REEVE, KIM GILLEN, BRENDA CONYNE, and TEXICO CONFERENCE ASSOCIATION OF SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS, Defendants-Appellees", "name_abbreviation": "Galetti v. Reeve", "decision_date": "2014-05-28", "docket_number": "Docket No. 32,625", "first_page": "443", "last_page": "448", "citations": [ { "type": "official", "cite": "2014-NMCA-079" } ], "court": { "name_abbreviation": "N.M. Ct. App.", "id": 9025, "name": "Court of Appeals of New Mexico" }, "jurisdiction": { "id": 52, "name_long": "New Mexico", "name": "N.M." }, "cites_to": [ { "cite": "2012-NMCA-071", "category": "reporters:neutral", "reporter": "NMCA", "case_ids": [ 4189623 ], "weight": 4, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "\u00b6 18" }, { "page": "\u00b6 12" }, { "page": "\u00b6 18" }, { "parenthetical": "internal quotation marks and citation omitted" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nm-app/2/0180-01" ] }, { "cite": "289 F.3d 648", "category": "reporters:federal", "reporter": "F.3d", "case_ids": [ 9435248 ], "weight": 4, "year": 2002, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "657" }, { "page": "655" }, { "page": "657" }, { "parenthetical": "internal quotation marks and citation omitted" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/f3d/289/0648-01" ] }, { "cite": "2006-NMCA-039", "category": "reporters:neutral", "reporter": "NMCA", "case_ids": [ 2543326 ], "weight": 6, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "\u00b6\u00b6 10-11" }, { "page": "\u00b6 11" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nm/139/0252-01" ] }, { "cite": "132 S. Ct. 694", "category": "reporters:federal", "reporter": "S. Ct.", "case_ids": [ 12445443, 12186094 ], "weight": 2, "year": 2012, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "697, 707", "parenthetical": "agreeing with the lower courts that \"[t]he ministerial exception is not limited to the head of a religious congregation\"" }, { "page": "700,707-09", "parenthetical": "refusing \"to adopt a rigid formula for deciding when an employee qualifies as a minister\" and concluding based on various factors that a \"called teacher\" was a minister for purposes of the ministerial exception" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/l-ed-2d/181/0650-01", "/us/565/0171-01" ] }, { "cite": "391 S.W.3d 660", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.W.3d", "case_ids": [ 7095579 ], "year": 2013, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "668" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/sw3d/391/0660-01" ] }, { "cite": "375 F.3d 951", "category": "reporters:federal", "reporter": "F.3d", "case_ids": [ 9376415 ], "year": 2004, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "959", "parenthetical": "holding that the district court erred in dismissing the plaintiffs claims for sexual harassment and retaliation because the claims might be purely secular" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/f3d/375/0951-01" ] }, { "cite": "91 So. 3d 887", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "So. 3d", "case_ids": [ 7017259, 7017181 ], "year": 2012, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "891-92", "parenthetical": "holding that the district court erred in dismissing the plaintiffs claim for defamation against the pastor under the church autonomy doctrine because the claim can be adjudicated without implicating the First Amendment" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/so3d/91/0887-02", "/so3d/91/0887-01" ] }, { "cite": "49 A.3d 812", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "A.3d", "case_ids": [ 7312458 ], "weight": 2, "year": 2012, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "817-18" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/a3d/49/0812-01" ] }, { "cite": "2014 WL 1512223", "category": "reporters:specialty_west", "reporter": "WL", "year": 2014, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "*11", "parenthetical": "concluding that ministerial employee's breach of contract claims survived motion for summary judgment because \"(1) the enforcement of the contractual arrangement. . . does not arouse concerns of government interference in the selection of ministers, and (2" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "800 A.2d 840", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "A.2d", "case_ids": [ 983914, 983932 ], "year": 2002, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "856-57", "parenthetical": "emphasis, internal quotation marks, and citations omitted" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nj/173/0025-01", "/nj/173/0026-01" ] }, { "cite": "126 F.3d 328", "category": "reporters:federal", "reporter": "F.3d", "case_ids": [ 943661 ], "year": 1997, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "331", "parenthetical": "describing threshold inquiry as determining whether the dispute is ecclesiastical or purely secular" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/f3d/126/0328-01" ] }, { "cite": "294 P.3d 1243", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "P.3d", "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "2012-NMCERT-006", "category": "reporters:neutral", "reporter": "NMCERT", "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "283 P.3d 871", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "P.3d", "opinion_index": 0 } ], "analysis": { "cardinality": 790, "char_count": 17687, "ocr_confidence": 0.768, "pagerank": { "raw": 4.03580807328026e-08, "percentile": 0.14079585334897904 }, "sha256": "2f14db5aa5442ee21f24d4028cd2a8a2092f1d22c5cc669ef80ec1a64e0c5958", "simhash": "1:136ef23449593fda", "word_count": 2699 }, "last_updated": "2023-07-14T17:19:17.637489+00:00", "provenance": { "date_added": "2019-08-29", "source": "Harvard", "batch": "2018" }, "casebody": { "judges": [ "TIMOTHY L. GARCIA, Judge", "WE CONCUR:", "RODERICK T. KENNEDY, Chief Judge", "MICHAEL D. BUSTAMANTE, Judge" ], "parties": [ "MELISSA GALETTI, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. DERRAL W. REEVE, KIM GILLEN, BRENDA CONYNE, and TEXICO CONFERENCE ASSOCIATION OF SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS, Defendants-Appellees." ], "opinions": [ { "text": "OPINION\nGARCIA, Judge.\n{1} Melissa Galetti (Plaintiff) appeals from the district court\u2019s grant of Defendants\u2019 motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim pursuant to Rule 1-012(B)(6) NMRA. The district court dismissed Plaintiffs complaint against the Texico Conference Association of Seventh-Day Adventists (the Conference), Derral W. Reeve, Kim Gillen, and Brenda Conyne because it concluded that Defendants are immune from suit pursuant to the church autonomy doctrine, which is based on the First Amendment. See Celnik v. Congregation B'Nai Israel, 2006-NMCA-039, \u00b6\u00b6 10-11, 139 N.M. 252, 131 P.3d 102. We conclude that the district court erred in dismissing Plaintiffs complaint. The First Amendment does not immunize every legal claim against a religious institution or its members, but only those claims that are rooted in religious belief. See id.; see also Bryce v. Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Colo., 289 F.3d 648,657 (10th Cir. 2002). As pled, Plaintiffs claims are not rooted in religious belief and thus do not implicate the First Amendment as a matter of law. We reverse the dismissal of Plaintiff s complaint and remand for further proceedings.\nBACKGROUND\n{2} For purposes of this appeal, \u201cwe accept all well-pleaded factual allegations in the complaint as true and resolve all doubts in favor of sufficiency of the complaint.\u201d Madrid v. Vill. of Chama, 2012-NMCA-071, \u00b6 18, 283 P.3d 871 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted), cert. denied, 2012-NMCERT-006, 294 P.3d 1243.\n{3} Plaintiff alleges that she was employed as a principal and a teacher at Crestview Elementary School (Crestview) located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, from 2009 to 2011. Crestview is a religious school operated by the Conference, which is part of the Southwestern Union and North American Division of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. Plaintiff alleges that she was harassed by her supervisor, Reeve, in the summer of 2010. Plaintiff submitted a complaint to the Conference, which issued a written reprimand to Reeve. Plaintiff alleges that Reeve, Gillen, and Conyne retaliated against her, which ultimately led to the termination of her employment.\n{4} Plaintiff alleges that she was told she would be employed as a teacher at Crestview for the 2011-12 school year and was not notified of a change prior to the May 1,2011, deadline. She filed a formal charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on May 17, 2011. Reeve raised the issue of Plaintiffs employment at a board meeting on May 23, 2012. At the meeting, which Plaintiff did not attend, the Board voted to terminate Plaintiffs employment \u201cwithout reason or cause.\u201d\n{5} Plaintiff filed a complaint for wrongful termination asserting the following claims for relief: (1) breach of contract against the Conference; (2) retaliatory discharge and violation of the New Mexico Human Rights Act against Reeve; (3) intentional interference with contract and civil conspiracy against Reeve, Gillen, and Conyne; and (4) defamation and civil conspiracy against Reeve, Gillen, and Conyne. Plaintiff sought compensatory and punitive damages, interest, attorney fees, and costs.\n{6} Defendants filed a motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 1-012(B)(6), arguing that all of Plaintiffs claims are barred by First Amendment considerations embodied in the church autonomy doctrine. In support of their motion, Defendants submitted portions of the Texico Conference Employee Handbook and the Southwestern Union Conference Education Code K-12. Defendants also filed a motion for a protective order, arguing that they should not have to respond to Plaintiffs discovery requests. Plaintiff fully responded to these motions.\n{7} Following a hearing, the district court issued a brief order granting Defendants\u2019 motion to dismiss and dismissing Plaintiffs complaint with prejudice. The district court stated that it found Defendants\u2019 motion to be \u201cwell taken\u201d but did not otherwise explain the basis for its decision. The district court noted that its decision mooted Defendants\u2019 motion for a protective order.\nDISCUSSION\n{8} Plaintiff contends the district court erred in granting Defendants-\u2019 motion to dismiss because the church autonomy doctrine does not prohibit breach of contract claims and does not apply to individuals sued in their individual capacity. Plaintiff also contends the district court erred in failing to convert Defendants\u2019 motion to dismiss into a motion for summary judgment. Because we conclude that the district court erred in dismissing Plaintiffs complaint, we do not consider this second issue.\n{9} We review the district court\u2019s grant of a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim under Rule 1-012(B)(6) de novo. See Madrid, 2012-NMCA-071, \u00b6 12. \u201cDismissal under Rule 1-012(B)(6) is appropriate only if the non-moving party is not entitled to recover under any theory of the facts alleged in their complaint.\u201d Madrid, 2012-NMCA-071, \u00b6 18 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). \u201cThe purpose of our rule is to test the law of the claim, not the facts that support it.\u201d Id. (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).\nA. Church Autonomy Doctrine\n{10} The church autonomy doctrine \u201cprohibits civil court review ofinternal church disputes involving matters of faith, doctrine, church governance, and polity.\u201d Bryce, 289 F.3d at 655. The doctrine is based on the First Amendment, which states in pertinent part that \u201cCongress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof[.]\u201d U.S. Const, amend. I. The church autonomy doctrine protects both interests embodied in the First Amendment. See Celnik, 2006-NMCA-039, \u00b6 11. \u201cFirst, it prevents civil legal entanglement between government and religious establishments by prohibiting courts from trying to resolve disputes related to ecclesiastical operations.\u201d Id. Second, it protects the free exercise of religion \u201cby limiting the possibility of civil interference in the workings of religious institutions [.]\u201d Id.\n{11} In Celnik, we recognized that the immunity afforded by the church autonomy doctrine \u201cis not absolute[.]\u201d Id. \u00b6 20. As the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals explained in Bryce, the church autonomy doctrine \u201cdoes not apply to purely secular decisions, even when made by churches.\u201d 289 F.3d at 657. Before a court concludes that the church autonomy doctrine is implicated, it must engage in the \u201cthreshold inquiry\u201d of determining \u201cwhether the alleged misconduct is rooted in religious beliefs.\u201d Id. (internal quotation marks and citation omitted); see also Bell v. Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), 126 F.3d 328, 331 (4th Cir. 1997) (describing threshold inquiry as determining whether the dispute is ecclesiastical or purely secular).\n{12} Here, it does not appear that the district court considered whether Plaintiffs claims are rooted In religious belief; instead, it appears that the district court simply concluded that Defendants are immune from suit as a matter of law. We do not believe that the church autonomy doctrine is so easily triggered. Whether it applies to any particular claim depends upon the specific nature of the claim and the remedy sought. We agree with the following:\nBefore barring a specific cause of action, a court first must analyze each element of every claim and determine whether adjudication would require the court to choose between competing religious visions, or cause interference with a church\u2019s administrative prerogatives. . .. The court must next examine the remedies sought by the plaintiff and decide whether enforcement of a judgment would require excessive procedural or substantive interference with church operations.\nIf the answer to either of those inquiries is in the affirmative, then the dispute is truly of a religious nature . . . and the claim is barred from secular court review. If, however, the dispute can be resolved by the application of purely neutral principles of law and without impermissible government intrusion . . . there is no First Amendment shield to litigation.\nMcKelvey v. Pierce, 800 A.2d 840, 856-57 (N.J. 2002) (emphasis, internal quotation marks, and citations omitted).\nB. Plaintiff\u2019s Breach of Contract Claim\n{13} We first consider whether the district court erred in concluding that the church autonomy doctrine precludes consideration of Plaintiffs breach of contract claim against the Conference. Plaintiff contends the district court erred in dismissing this claim because it is secular in nature and can be resolved without implicating the First Amendment. Defendants contend this claim was properly dismissed because any question regarding Plaintiffs termination is a religious question in light of Plaintiff s ministerial position. W e\nagree with Plaintiff.\n{14} In her complaint, Plaintiff alleges that the Conference made express and implied promises to her concerning her employment, which she reasonably relied upon in accepting employment. She alleges that the Conference breached its promises to her, among them \u201cthe failure to timely notify [Plaintiff] of non-renewal and [the] failure to timely terminate her 2011-12 teaching contract year with just cause.\u201d As pled, it appears that Plaintiff can succeed on her breach of contract claim without any religious intrusion. The district court does not need to determine whether the Conference had cause to terminate Plaintiffs employment, but only whether the Conference complied with its contractual obligation with respect to the timeliness of the notice it provided to Plaintiff.\n{15} In terms of remedy, Plaintiff does not seek reinstatement of her teaching position, but seeks only monetary damages. Defendants do not contend that entering a money judgment against the Conference would require excessive interference with church operations. Thus, under the framework set forth in McKelvey, Plaintiffs breach of contract claim does not appear to be religious in nature and thus does not implicate First Amendment concerns as a matter of law.\n{16} Because Plaintiff s breach of contract claim can potentially be resolved without any religious entanglement, we conclude that the district court erred in dismissing it. See, e.g., Kirby v. Lexington Theological Seminary,_ S.W.3d _, 2014 WL 1512223, at *11 (Ky. 2014) (concluding that ministerial employee\u2019s breach of contract claims survived motion for summary judgment because \u201c(1) the enforcement of the contractual arrangement. . . does not arouse concerns of government interference in the selection of ministers, and (2) the contract does not involve any matters of ecclesiastical concern\u201d); Second Episcopal Dist. African Methodist Episcopal Church v. Prioleau, 49 A.3d 812, 817-18 (D.C. 2012) (affirming the district court\u2019s denial of the church\u2019s motion to dismiss breach of contract claim and noting that plaintiff \u201cdoes not claim she was wrongfully terminated or otherwise tether her contract claim to matters of church doctrine or governance\u201d but \u201cclaims only that the church failed to pay her salary after acknowledging its obligation to do so\u201d). If, at some later stage in the proceedings, it becomes apparent that Plaintiffs breach of contract claim in fact turns on matters of doctrinal interpretation or church governance, then summary judgment in favor of the Conference may be proper. See id.\nC. Plaintiff\u2019s Claims Against Individual Defendants\n{17} We next consider whether the district court erred in concluding that the church autonomy doctrine precludes consideration of Plaintiffs claims against Reeve, Gillen, and Conyne for retaliatory discharge and violation of the New Mexico Human Rights Act, intentional interference with contract and civil conspiracy, and defamation and civil conspiracy. Plaintiff contends the district court erred in dismissing these claims because the church autonomy doctrine does not bar claims against individuals acting in their individual capacities and because these claims do not concern religious matters. Defendants contend these claims were properly dismissed because they arise out of Plaintiff\u2019s termination as a teacher and thus cannot be pursued in a judicial forum. We conclude that the district court erred in dismissing these claims because, as pled, they do not necessarily involve religious matters.\n{18} In her complaint, Plaintiff alleges that Reeve \u201cengaged in false statements and retaliatory conduct\u201d against Plaintiff and \u201corchestrated] and conspirfed]\u201d with Gillen, and Conyne to get Plaintiff fired. Plaintiff alleges that Reeve, Gillen, and Conyne \u201cimproperly used their position and relationships with [the Conference] ... to cause [the Conference] to wrongfully terminate [Plaintiffs] employment.\u201d And Plaintiff alleges that Reeve, Gillen, and Conyne made defamatory statements to third parties concerning Plaintiff\u2019s work and family.\n{19} Defendants contend these claims were properly dismissed because they all \u201carise from a single factual nucleus: the termination of [Plaintiffs] employment as a teacher at Crestview, a ministerial position.\u201d As we have already discussed, the immunity afforded by the church autonomy doctrine is not triggered simply by the subject matter of the complaint. Instead, the church autonomy doctrine applies only if judicial resolution of the claims would violate the First Amendment. This is a fact-specific and claim-specific inquiry, an inquiry that the district court did not engage in here.\n{20} We are not persuaded that the resolution of Plaintiff s claims against Reeve, Gillen, and Conyne, as pled, will necessarily result in religious entanglement. We thus conclude that the district court erred in dismissing them as a matter of law. See, e.g., Bilbrey v. Myers, 91 So. 3d 887, 891-92 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2012) (holding that the district court erred in dismissing the plaintiffs claim for defamation against the pastor under the church autonomy doctrine because the claim can be adjudicated without implicating the First Amendment); Elvig v. Calvin Presbyterian Church, 375 F.3d 951, 959 (9th Cir. 2004) (holding that the district court erred in dismissing the plaintiffs claims for sexual harassment and retaliation because the claims might be purely secular).\n{21} If it appears at a later stage of this case that Plaintiffs claims against Reeve, Gillen, and Conyne cannot be resolved without religious entanglement, then those claims may properly be dismissed. See, e.g., Jennison v. Prasifka, 391 S.W.3d 660, 668 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013) (concluding that the plaintiffs claims for slander, tortious interference with a contractual relationship, and wrongful discharge \u201care inextricably intertwined with the church\u2019s investigation of his performance as a priest and the discipline imposed\u201d and thus subject to dismissal).\nCONCLUSION\n{22} For the reasons stated above, we reverse the district court\u2019s order granting Defendants\u2019 motion to dismiss andremand for further proceedings.\n{23} IT IS SO ORDERED.\nTIMOTHY L. GARCIA, Judge\nWE CONCUR:\nRODERICK T. KENNEDY, Chief Judge\nMICHAEL D. BUSTAMANTE, Judge\nPlaintiff alleges in her complaint that she was harassed \u201cduring the summer of 2011 \u201d but it is clear from the timeline of events and other documents in the record that the alleged harassment took place in 2010, not 2011.\nPlaintiff also asserted a claim for intentional and negligent misrepresentation against the Conference, but she voluntarily dismissed that claim.\nWe assume for purposes of this appeal that Plaintiff s position was aministerial one; even though she was not the head of the congregation. See Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church & Sch. v. EEOC, 132 S. Ct. 694, 697, 707 (2012) (agreeing with the lower courts that \u201c[t]he ministerial exception is not limited to the head of a religious congregation\u201d). Wenote, however, that the question of whether a particular individual\u2019s position should be considered ministerial is a question of fact, not of law, and thus should generally be decided in the context of a motion for summary judgment rather than a motion to dismiss. See id. at 700,707-09 (refusing \u201cto adopt a rigid formula for deciding when an employee qualifies as a minister\u201d and concluding based on various factors that a \u201ccalled teacher\u201d was a minister for purposes of the ministerial exception).\nWe note that the record contains a letter from the Conference to Plaintiff, dated June 1, 2011, stating that the Board voted \u201cnot to retain [Plaintiff] as a teacher.\u201d This letter appears to invoke the non-renewal provision sot forth in the Southwestern Union Conference Education Code K-12, which states that \u201c[t]he employing organization shall give written notice to die regular employee by May 1 [of] its intention not to renew the annual assignment agreement.\u201d Defendants argue in their answer brief that Plaintiffs breach of contract claim cannot be examined without religious entanglement because the district court must determine whedier Plaintiffs termination was for cause. This might be an appropriate argument for a motion for summary judgment, but not for a motion to dismiss. Looking at Plaintiffs complaint, it appears that she can succeed on her breach of contract claim without having to establish that she was terminated without cause.", "type": "majority", "author": "GARCIA, Judge." } ], "attorneys": [ "Maestas & Suggett, P.C. W ayne R. Suggett Albuquerque, NM", "for Appellant", "Rodey, Dickason, Sloan, Akin & Robb, P.A. Edward Ricco Jocelyn Drennan Albuquerque, NM", "for Appellees" ], "corrections": "", "head_matter": "IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO\nOpinion Number: 2014-NMCA-079\nFiling Date: May 28, 2014\nDocket No. 32,625\nMELISSA GALETTI, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. DERRAL W. REEVE, KIM GILLEN, BRENDA CONYNE, and TEXICO CONFERENCE ASSOCIATION OF SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTISTS, Defendants-Appellees.\nMaestas & Suggett, P.C. W ayne R. Suggett Albuquerque, NM\nfor Appellant\nRodey, Dickason, Sloan, Akin & Robb, P.A. Edward Ricco Jocelyn Drennan Albuquerque, NM\nfor Appellees" }, "file_name": "0443-01", "first_page_order": 459, "last_page_order": 464 }