Dupler v. Seubert

Ethel Dupler (plaintiff) was called into a closed-door office meeting with her employers, Keith Peterson and Helen Seubert (defendants), to discuss ending her employment. Dupler testified she tried to leave multiple times, but Peterson yelled harshly at her to sit down and Seubert stood in front of the door, leaving her too frightened by the raised tempers to genuinely attempt an exit; the defendants testified they never raised their voices, used threatening language, or kept her there against her will, and that the two-hour meeting simply ran long because Dupler was trying to talk them out of firing her. The jury found for Dupler on her false-imprisonment claim, and the defendants appealed.