Hunter v. Earthgrains Co. Bakery
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
281 F.3d 144 (4th Cir. 2002)
Attorney Pamela Hunter represented employees suing Earthgrains Co. Bakery (defendant) for employment discrimination; the district court found the employees' claims subject to arbitration under a collective bargaining agreement, over Hunter's argument that the CBA didn't cover federal statutory discrimination claims, a position that conflicted with existing Fourth Circuit precedent (Austin). The court then sua sponte ordered Hunter to show cause why she shouldn't be sanctioned under Rule 11, without letting her invoke the rule's usual 21-day safe-harbor withdrawal period since the sanctions were issued on the court's own initiative. Before the court ruled, the Supreme Court decided Wright, holding a CBA's arbitration clause covers federal discrimination claims only with a "clear and unmistakable waiver" — a position aligning with Hunter's argument — yet the court still suspended Hunter from practice for five years and reprimanded her co-counsel.
Whether an attorney may be sanctioned under Rule 11 for asserting a legal position that conflicts with binding circuit precedent, when the position is grounded in a genuine circuit split and a colorable argument for a different result.