United States Court of Appeals FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT _____________

No. 97-1675EM _____________

Patricia M. Rhoads, * * Appellant, * * Appeal from the United States v. * District Court for the Eastern * District of Missouri. The Jones Financial Companies; * Edward D. Jones & Co., L.P., * [UNPUBLISHED] * Appellees. * _____________

Submitted: November 17, 1997 Filed: November 26, 1997 _____________

Before FAGG, WOLLMAN, and HANSEN, Circuit Judges. _____________

PER CURIAM.

Patricia M. Rhoads brought this action against The Jones Financial Companies (JFC) and Edward D. Jones & Co. (EDJ) alleging violations of Title VII, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Missouri Human Rights Act. On summary judgment, the magistrate judge rejected Rhoads's claims. After careful review of the record, we agree with the magistrate judge that Rhoads was a general partner rather than an employee of JFC and EDJ, and she could not invoke the protections of statutes which afford relief to employees. Having failed to comply with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56(f), Rhoads's argument that the district court prematurely granted summary judgment before she had an opportunity to conduct discovery is foreclosed by the holdings of this court. See Allen v. Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc., 81 F.3d 793, 797-98 (8th Cir. 1996). We thus affirm the magistrate judge's ruling. See 8th Cir. R. 47B.

A true copy.

Attest:

CLERK, U.S. COURT OF APPEALS, EIGHTH CIRCUIT.

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