Discrimination

  • May 09, 2025

    A Look At David Souter's Most Significant Opinions

    The retired Justice David Souter defied simple definition, viewed as a staunch conservative until he co-wrote an opinion upholding abortion rights in 1992. He did not hew to partisan lines, but reshaped the civil litigation landscape and took an unexpected stand in an extraordinarily close presidential election.

  • May 09, 2025

    Calif. Forecast: Petroleum Cos. $7M Wage Deal Before Court

    In the coming week, attorneys should watch for the potential initial approval of a $7.2 million deal in a proposed wage and hour class action against Marathon Refining Logistics Services and related companies. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters on deck in California.

  • May 09, 2025

    Justice Souter Was An Unexpected Force Of Moderation

    Justice David Souter, who saw the high court as a moderating force apart from the messiness of politics, subverted the expectations of liberals and conservatives alike during his 19 years on the bench.

  • May 09, 2025

    Google Strikes $50M Deal To End Black Workers' Bias Suit

    Google has agreed to pay $50 million to resolve a proposed class action claiming the technology giant paid thousands of Black workers less than their white colleagues and provided them scant opportunities for advancement, according to a filing in California federal court.

  • May 09, 2025

    Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter Dies At 85

    Retired Justice David H. Souter, who served on the U.S. Supreme Court from 1990 to 2009, has died at 85, the court announced Friday. 

  • May 08, 2025

    5th Circ. Wipes Out Southwest Attys' Religious Training Order

    The Fifth Circuit on Thursday held that a lower court overstepped by ordering several in-house Southwest Airlines attorneys to undergo "religious liberty training" following a flight attendant's win in a wrongful termination suit, finding that the training wouldn't benefit the flight attendant or persuade Southwest to comply with an earlier order.

  • May 08, 2025

    Judge Seems To Favor Susman Godfrey In Trump Challenge

    A D.C. federal judge appeared poised Thursday to allow Susman Godfrey LLP's challenge to President Donald Trump's executive order targeting the firm to proceed or to grant the firm a summary judgment win altogether, after she pressed a government attorney on the president's basis for alleging discrimination at the firm.

  • May 08, 2025

    Panel Says Colo. Hospitals Need Notice Of Retaliation Claims

    A Colorado appeals court on Thursday sided with a Denver health system in a precedential ruling, finding healthcare workers who sue public hospitals under a state anti-retaliation statute must warn hospitals about their claims.

  • May 08, 2025

    Judge Allows WWE Accuser To Add SEC Settlement To Suit

    A former World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. staffer, who has accused ex-CEO Vince McMahon of assault and sex trafficking in Connecticut federal court, was allowed to include in an amended complaint the settlement McMahon reached with the federal government regarding payments he made to her and another woman over alleged misconduct.

  • May 08, 2025

    6th Circ. Seems Open To Reviving Ex-Ford Worker's Bias Suit

    The Sixth Circuit appeared skeptical Thursday of Ford Motor Co.'s arguments that a fired Muslim and Middle Eastern employee had not laid out sufficient facts to keep his bias and retaliation lawsuit alive, indicating plaintiffs needn't meet a high bar in the early stages of a case.

  • May 08, 2025

    Ex-Tesla Worker Can't Upend Arbitrator's Race Bias Decision

    A former Tesla assistant store manager can't upend an arbitration award in favor of the company on claims that he was harassed and passed over for promotion because he's Black, a California federal judge ruled, saying the arbitrator didn't abuse her powers by limiting the number of depositions.

  • May 08, 2025

    Wayfair Beats Software Engineer's Age Bias Suit

    A Massachusetts state jury has cleared Wayfair in a discrimination case brought by a 53-year-old software engineer who was terminated in the early months of the pandemic after he requested flexibility to care for his school-age children.

  • May 08, 2025

    Fogo De Chao Hit With Wage, Age Bias Suit In NY

    Brazilian steakhouse chain Fogo de Chao failed to properly pay servers and forced them to share tips with owners and managers while also discriminating against a former employee for his age, according to a proposed class and collective action filed Thursday in New York federal court.

  • May 08, 2025

    Judge Asks DOJ To Define DEI In Health Grant Case

    A Massachusetts federal judge on Thursday ordered U.S. Department of Justice lawyers to provide the Trump administration's definitions of diversity, equity and inclusion, saying he needs to know so he can consider whether that is a valid basis for pausing federal health research grants.

  • May 08, 2025

    11th Circ. Won't Revisit Ga. City Atty's Sex Harassment Suit

    The Eleventh Circuit refused Thursday to reopen a lawsuit from a former Atlanta city attorney who claimed she was fired for complaining about her boss' sexual advances, saying it found no issues with a trial court's decision to toss the case.

  • May 08, 2025

    Landry's To Pay Iranian Server $95K In EEOC Harassment Suit

    Seafood restaurant chain Landry's will pay $95,000 to wrap up a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it fired an Iranian server under false allegations that she came to work drunk after she complained about harassment, according to a Colorado federal court filing.

  • May 08, 2025

    Quorum Would Let EEOC Fully Embrace Trump Agenda

    Confirmation of the Republican attorney nominated by President Donald Trump to join the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission would likely herald a swift overhaul of Biden-era policies along with an uptick in EEOC lawsuits and amicus briefs championing conservative priorities.

  • May 08, 2025

    Pa. Jury Awards $165K To Teachers In Equal Pay Suit

    A Pennsylvania jury awarded a total of $165,000 in damages to two female teachers who claimed they had been unfairly paid less than their male counterparts in the Central Bucks School District Thursday.

  • May 08, 2025

    DOJ Civil Rights Appellate Leader Joins Crowell & Moring

    Crowell & Moring LLP hired the acting deputy chief of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division's Appellate Section as a senior counsel who will be based in Washington focusing on a range of higher education matters, the firm announced Thursday.

  • May 08, 2025

    Jury Says Firm Owes Ex-HR Exec $3.27M In Retaliation Case

    A Tennessee federal jury said a personal injury firm should pay $3.27 million to a former chief people officer who claimed she was fired after raising concerns that female attorneys were being paid less than men.

  • May 08, 2025

    5th Circ. Says Late Filing Dooms Fired Worker's Vax Bias Suit

    The Fifth Circuit declined to revive an ex-Texas Children's Hospital worker's bias suit claiming she was fired for seeking a religious exemption to its COVID-19 vaccination requirement, rejecting her argument that a lost password excused missing a deadline to file the case.

  • May 08, 2025

    Lewis Brisbois Litigator Jumps To FordHarrison In LA

    Management-side labor and employment firm FordHarrison LLP is growing its West Coast team, bringing in a litigator from Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP as a partner in its Los Angeles office.

  • May 07, 2025

    DOJ Drops Bias Claims Over NY Fire Dept. Hiring Practices

    The U.S. Department of Justice dropped its claims on Wednesday in long-running federal litigation against New York City over allegedly discriminatory hiring practices against minority firefighter applicants, two weeks after President Donald Trump signed an executive order that seeks to end disparate impact as a theory of liability for unlawful discrimination.

  • May 07, 2025

    BNSF Fired Conductor For Seeking Injury Payment, Suit Says

    BNSF Railway Co. has been hit with an employment retaliation suit in Washington federal court by a former conductor who claims he was wrongfully fired based on an unsubstantiated rule violation after he sought compensation for a brake rigging accident that severely injured his hand.

  • May 07, 2025

    Illinois Seeks Exit From Suit Over Demographic Data Law

    Illinois asked a federal judge to toss a lawsuit brought by a group called the American Alliance for Equal Rights that seeks to block the state from enforcing a law requiring nonprofits to publicize their demographic data, saying the organization has no standing to bring the claims.

Expert Analysis

  • Big Business May Come To Rue The Post-Administrative State

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    Many have framed the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions overturning Chevron deference and extending the window to challenge regulations as big wins for big business, but sand in the gears of agency rulemaking may be a double-edged sword, creating prolonged uncertainty that impedes businesses’ ability to plan for the future, says Todd Baker at Columbia University.

  • A Timeline Of Antisemitism Legislation And What It Means

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    What began as hearings in the House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce has expanded to a House-wide effort to combat antisemitism and related issues, with wide-ranging implications for education, finance and nonprofit entities, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Colo. Ruling Adopts 'Actual Discharge' Test For The First Time

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    After a Colorado court’s recent decision in Potts v. Gaia Children, adopting for the first time a test for evaluating an actual discharge claim, employers must diligently document the circumstances surrounding termination of employment, and exercise particular caution when texting employees, says Michael Laszlo at Clark Hill.

  • It's Time For Nationwide Race-Based Hair Protections

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    While 24 states have passed laws that prohibit race-based hair discrimination, this type of bias persists in workplaces and schools, so a robust federal law is necessary to ensure widespread protection, says Samone Ijoma and Erica Roberts at Sanford Heisler.

  • After Chevron: EEOC Status Quo Will Likely Continue

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    As the legal landscape adjusts to the end of Chevron deference, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s rulemaking authority isn’t likely to shift as much as some other employment-related agencies, says Paige Lyle at FordHarrison.

  • After Chevron: Various Paths For Labor And Employment Law

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    Labor and employment law leans heavily on federal agency guidance, so the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to toss out Chevron deference will ripple through this area, with future workplace policies possibly taking shape through strategic litigation, informal guidance, state-level regulation and more, says Alexander MacDonald at Littler.

  • FIFA Maternity Policy Shows Need For Federal Paid Leave

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    While FIFA and other employers taking steps to provide paid parental leave should be applauded, the U.S. deserves a red card for being the only rich nation in the world that offers no such leave, says Dacey Romberg at Sanford Heisler.

  • What 2 Rulings On Standing Mean For DEI Litigation

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    Recent federal court decisions in the Fearless Fund and Hello Alice cases shed new light on the ongoing wave of challenges to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, with opposite conclusions on whether the plaintiffs had standing to sue, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Eye On Compliance: A Brief History Of Joint Employer Rules

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    It's important to examine the journey of the joint employer rule, because if the National Labor Relations Board's Fifth Circuit appeal is successful and the 2023 version is made law, virtually every employer who contracts for labor likely could be deemed a joint employer, say Bruno Katz and Robert Curtis at Wilson Elser.

  • Top 5 Issues For Employers To Audit Midyear

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    Six months into 2024, developments from federal courts and regulatory agencies should prompt employers to reflect on their progress regarding artificial intelligence, noncompetes, diversity initiatives, religious accommodation and more, say Allegra Lawrence-Hardy and Lisa Haldar at Lawrence & Bundy.

  • Tailoring Compliance Before AI Walks The Runway

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    Fashion industry players that adopt artificial intelligence to propel their businesses forward should consider ways to minimize its perceived downsides, including potential job displacements and algorithmic biases that may harm diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, say Jeffrey Greene and Ivory Djahouri at Foley & Lardner.

  • Where Anti-Discrimination Law Stands 4 Years After Bostock

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    On the fourth anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Bostock ruling, Evan Parness and Abby Rickeman at Covington take stock of how the decision, which held that Title VII protects employees from discrimination because of their sexual orientation and gender identity, has affected anti-discrimination law at the state and federal levels.

  • Politics In The Workplace: What Employers Need To Know

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    As the 2024 election approaches and protests continue across the country, employers should be aware of employees' rights — and limits on those rights — related to political speech and activities in the workplace, and be prepared to act proactively to prevent issues before they arise, say attorneys at Littler.