LAKE CHARLES – A Calcasieu Parish woman alleges was wrongfully terminated in retaliation for taking a leave to care for her mother.
Denise Ceylon Dugas filed a complaint on Jan. 13 in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Lake Charles Division against Doerle Food Services LLC and Craig Clark alleging that they violated the Family Medical Leave Act.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that on Sept. 16, 2016, she was terminated from her employment with the defendants for taking FMLA-protected leave to care for her mother. The plaintiff holds Doerle Food Services LLC and Clark responsible because the defendants allegedly interfered with her right to take FMLA-protected leave and retaliated against her by terminating her employment on her 57th birthday. As a result, she alleges she suffered severe emotional distress, lost wages, commissions, employment benefits and other compensations.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks compensatory and liquidated damages, plus interest, attorney's fees and costs and such other relief as the court deems just and proper. She is represented by Merrick J. Norman and Joseph P. Norman of Norman Business Law Center LLC in Lake Charles.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Lake Charles Division Case number 2:17-cv-00044