Discrimination

  • October 31, 2024

    Argument Sessions Bias Attys Should Watch In November

    The Fourth Circuit will hear from a nurse who was fired for refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccination while the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission will venture to the First, Tenth and Eleventh circuits to back up arguments made in amicus briefs. Here are four argument sessions employment discrimination attorneys should keep tabs on this month.

  • October 31, 2024

    9th Circ. Won't Revive Ex-Credit One Bank Worker's ADA Suit

    The Ninth Circuit backed Credit One Bank's win over a former employee's claims that she was fired for complaining that her pay was docked while on medical leave, finding she couldn't overcome the bank's explanation that she had used slurs when referring to a supervisor.

  • October 31, 2024

    The 2024 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard

    Check out the Law360 Pulse Leaderboard to see which firms made the list of leaders in all-around excellence this year.

  • October 31, 2024

    Firms' Hiring Strategies Are Evolving In Fight For Top Spot

    Competition for top talent among elite law firms shows no signs of slowing down, even amid economic uncertainty, with financially strong firms deploying aggressive strategies to attract and retain skilled professionals to solidify their market position.

  • October 30, 2024

    Ex-Tyson Worker Denied Class Cert. In Vax Religious Bias Suit

    An Arkansas federal judge on Tuesday denied class certification to a former Tyson Foods employee accusing the company of placing her on unpaid leave after she sought a religious exemption for a COVID-19 vaccine requirement, saying she failed to show that proposed class members shared common legal or factual issues.

  • October 30, 2024

    5th Circ. Upholds Texas A&M's Defeat Of Hiring Bias Suit

    The Fifth Circuit on Wednesday backed Texas A&M University's win over a professor's lawsuit claiming its hiring practices prevent white and Asian men's applications from being properly considered, finding his failure to actually seek a job at the school doomed his case.

  • October 30, 2024

    Ex-Ford Models CEO Can't Arbitrate Sex Misconduct Suit

    A California appeals court won't let the former CEO of Ford Models send a woman's suit brought under a state sex trafficking law to arbitration, saying her allegations don't fall within the scope of the arbitration agreement she signed.

  • October 30, 2024

    Biopharma Co. Can't Knock Ex-CFO's Bias Suit Out Of Court

    A biopharmaceutical development company can't kick a fired executive's bias suit to arbitration, a California federal judge said, ruling that the harassment she said she faced on the job was gendered enough to invoke a federal law curbing out-of-court-resolutions of sex harassment claims.

  • October 30, 2024

    4 Things Discrimination Attys May Have Missed In October

    An ousted Christian fire chief appealing his loss in a religious bias suit has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to ditch its longstanding McDonnell Douglas test, and a recent Maryland Supreme Court decision that narrowed a bias law exemption for religious employers is being challenged as unconstitutional. Here, Law360 looks at four employment litigation developments that flew under the radar this month.

  • October 30, 2024

    Rap Producer Metro Boomin Accused Of Rape In Calif. Suit

    Grammy-nominated rap and hip-hop producer Metro Boomin was sued in California state court Tuesday for allegedly raping a woman who visited his recording studio in 2016, resulting in an unwanted pregnancy and an abortion.

  • October 30, 2024

    3rd Circ. Mulls Definition Of Sexual Harassment In CVS Suit

    A Third Circuit panel on Wednesday attempted to parse distinctions between sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination as a former CVS manager argued that a trial court was wrong to find that a 2022 law limiting mandatory arbitration of sexual harassment claims didn't shield her bias suit from dismissal. 

  • October 30, 2024

    High Court Ruling Gets Social Worker's Bias Suit Reinstated

    The Eighth Circuit reopened a Black social worker's lawsuit alleging he received an unfavorable performance review because he asked for a new desk to work remotely in his wheelchair, ruling Wednesday that a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision necessitated giving his case a second look.

  • October 30, 2024

    Southwest Seeks To Dismantle Military Leave Class

    Southwest Airlines urged a California federal judge to disassemble a nearly 3,000-member class of workers who say the company violated federal law by failing to pay them for short stints of military leave, saying new evidence shows there are too many individualized issues to warrant class treatment.

  • October 30, 2024

    National Security Bars FBI Agent's Bias Suit, DC Circ. Says

    The D.C. Circuit declined to revive a fired FBI agent's suit claiming bias toward his Chinese ancestry caused the agency to yank his security clearance after he failed three polygraph tests, ruling the courts can't touch the case because the FBI's decision involved national security.

  • October 30, 2024

    Texas Sues Another Doc For Violating Trans Care Ban

    The state of Texas announced Wednesday it launched another lawsuit accusing a physician of violating a state law barring healthcare providers from offering gender transition services to minors.

  • October 30, 2024

    Jury Awards Wynn Las Vegas Server $321K In FMLA Suit

    A Nevada jury awarded a former Wynn Las Vegas cocktail server about $321,000 in damages from her claim that the casino resort operator interfered with her Family and Medical Leave Act rights, but didn't side with the worker on her discrimination allegation.

  • October 30, 2024

    Honda Blocks Black Workers From Promotions, Suit Says

    Honda's manufacturing arm systematically bars Black workers from securing senior positions in the company by shrouding its promotional processes in secrecy, according to a proposed class action filed by a Black employee in Ohio federal court.

  • October 30, 2024

    Meltzer Lippe Allowed Widespread Sex Harassment, Suit Says

    Attorneys at Meltzer Lippe Goldstein & Breitstone LLP regularly made crude sexual jokes about women, promoted less qualified men at the expense of female employees, and fired a partner because she complained about the work environment, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday in New York federal court.

  • October 29, 2024

    White Ex-Prof's Race, Age Bias Claims Fall Short At 6th Circ.

    The Sixth Circuit backed the dismissal Tuesday of race and age discrimination claims from a white former professor who said he was fired after criticizing a harassment investigation into his department chair, but revived his defamation claims against a colleague.

  • October 29, 2024

    Legal Union Fights Title VII Claims After Palestine Resolution

    The Association of Legal Aid Attorneys did not violate anti-discrimination laws by moving to expel three attorneys who tried to stop the union from adopting a controversial pro-Palestine resolution, the union has argued, asking a New York federal judge to dismiss the attorneys' Title VII lawsuit.

  • October 29, 2024

    Clorox Accused Of Firing HR Manager Over Race Bias Report

    A former human resources manager at Clorox's metro Atlanta plant has alleged she was forced out of her job for refusing to drop racial bias concerns about the company's hiring practices, according to a recent federal lawsuit.

  • October 29, 2024

    Philly Cops Lose Free Speech Suit Over Facebook Posts

    A group of active and former Philadelphia Police Department officers disciplined for inflammatory Facebook activity have lost their First Amendment lawsuit against the city, with a Pennsylvania federal judge ruling Tuesday that the city had the right to terminate officers for making racist, violent and otherwise offensive posts.

  • October 29, 2024

    7th Circ. Backs University of Illinois' Win In Retaliation Suit

    A former University of Illinois at Springfield adjunct professor cannot revive her retaliation claims because she couldn't defeat the university's assertion that it was her own retaliation against others that led the university to let her contract expire, the Seventh Circuit said Tuesday.

  • October 29, 2024

    Christian Group Can't Get Around Anti-Bias Law, EEOC Says

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission urged the Ninth Circuit to reject a Christian humanitarian organization's argument that it was on solid legal ground to yank a job offer from an applicant after learning she was in a same-sex marriage, saying siding with the group will "undermine" Title VII.

  • October 29, 2024

    NYC Pet Leave Bill Marks 'Radical Departure' In Sick Time Use

    Legislation proposed by two New York City Council members that would require letting workers use sick leave to care for pets and service animals is an unprecedented move and an acknowledgment of the rising importance employees place on mental health, experts say.

Expert Analysis

  • High Court's Job Bias Questions May Predict Title VII Ruling

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    Employers may be able to predict — and prepare for — important changes to workplace discrimination laws by examining the questions the U.S. Supreme Court asked during oral arguments for Muldrow v. St. Louis, where several justices seemed to favor a low threshold for Title VII suits, says Wendy LaManque at Pryor Cashman.

  • 2 Cases Highlight NJ Cannabis Employment Law Uncertainties

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    More than two years after its enactment, the employee protections and employer obligations in New Jersey's Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance and Marketplace Modernization Act remain unsettled, and two recent lawsuits draw attention to the law's enforceability and its intersection with federal law, say Ruth Rauls at Saul Ewing and David White at Seton Hall.

  • 3 Compliance Reminders For Calif. Employers In 2024

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    As we enter into the new year, several recent updates to California employment law — including minimum wage and sick leave requirements — necessitate immediate compliance actions for employers, says Daniel Pyne at Hopkins & Carley.

  • Sex Harassment Arbitration Exemption: Devil Is In The Date

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    A Federal Arbitration Act amendment that exempts workplace sexual harassment claims from arbitration is muddled in ongoing confusion about its chronological reach — and as many such cases begin to run up against applicable statutes of limitations, the clock is ticking for claimants to bring their actions in court, says Abe Melamed at Signature Resolution.

  • Top 10 Employer Resolutions For 2024

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    From technological leaps to sea changes in labor policy to literal sea changes, 2024 provides opportunities for employers to face big-picture questions that will shape their business for years to come, say Allegra Lawrence-Hardy and Lisa Haldar at Lawrence & Bundy.

  • Lessons Learned From 2023's Top FMLA Decisions

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    This year’s most significant Family and Medical Leave Act decisions offer lessons on the act's technical requirements, including the definition of serious health condition, compliance with notice requirements and whether it is permissible to give an employee substantial extra work upon their return from leave, says Linda Dwoskin at Dechert.

  • Artificial Intelligence Is In Need Of Regulation — But How?

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    Since most of the artificial intelligence-related laws in 2023 were part of more extensive consumer privacy law, the U.S. still has a lot of work to do to build consensus on how to oversee AI, and even who should do the regulating, before moving forward on specific and reasonable guidelines as AI's capabilities grow, say Nick Toufexis and Paul Saputo at Saputo Toufexis.

  • Lessons Learned From 2023's Top ADA Decisions

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    This year saw the courts delving into the complexities of employee accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act in the post-pandemic workplace, going beyond bright-line rules with fact-intensive inquiries that are likely to create uncertainty for employers, says Linda Dwoskin at Dechert.

  • What's Ahead For Immigrant Employee Rights Enforcement

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    The U.S. Department of Justice’s increased enforcement related to immigration-based employment discrimination is coupled with pending constitutional challenges to administrative tribunals, suggesting employers should leverage those headwinds when facing investigations or class action-style litigation, say attorneys at Jones Day.

  • Top 10 Whistleblowing And Retaliation Events Of 2023

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and federal and state courts made 2023 another groundbreaking year for whistleblower litigation and retaliation developments, including the SEC’s massive whistleblower awards, which are likely to continue into 2024 and further incentivize individuals to submit tips, say attorneys at Proskauer.

  • 10 Steps To Reduce Risks From AI Employment Tools

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    In light of the White House’s recent executive order on responsible use of artificial intelligence, companies using AI tools to make employment decisions should take steps to understand and mitigate the legal risks posed by these products and keep up with the rapidly evolving regulations that govern them, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • What Employers Can Learn From EEOC's 2023 ADA Priorities

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    Between a spike in Americans with Disabilities Act suits filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 2023 and the agency’s newly released priorities, the EEOC has provided employers a preview of several ADA issues — like web accessibility, pregnancy discrimination and inflexible policies — it will likely focus enforcement on next year, says Stacy Bunck at Ogletree.

  • Eye On Compliance: EEOC Focus On Workplace AI

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    With the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s recent guidance and enforcement focus on the use of artificial intelligence tools during the hiring process and other job-related assessments, companies should be mindful that anti-discrimination laws apply equally to both human- and AI-generated decisions, say Laura Stutz and Lisa Ackerman at Wilson Elser.