Discrimination

  • September 02, 2025

    7th Circ. Ends Age Bias Suit But Says ADEA Bans Harassment

    A former kindergarten teacher did not properly back up her case alleging she was denied proper classroom support and micromanaged because she's older, the Seventh Circuit found, declining to reinstate her suit but concluding that the Age Discrimination in Employment Act can cover harassment claims.

  • September 02, 2025

    Northrop Defeats Black Engineer's Pay, Promotion Bias Suit

    A Maryland federal judge tossed a Black electrical engineer's suit claiming defense contractor Northrop Grumman handed him lackluster promotions and pay raises out of racial bias, saying he hasn't put forward evidence that prejudice was the reason for the offers he received.

  • August 29, 2025

    5 Arguments For Discrimination Attorneys To Watch In Sept.

    The Fourth Circuit will consider whether a trial court rightly blocked parts of two Trump administration executive orders targeting diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and the Fifth Circuit will consider whether United Airlines employees correctly won class certification for Title VII claims challenging the company's COVID-19 accommodation practices. Here are five argument sessions that discrimination attorneys should keep tabs on in the coming month.

  • August 29, 2025

    Logistics Cos. Can't Escape Worker Visa Misuse Class Action

    Two logistics companies have failed to escape a proposed class action accusing them of misusing a professional worker visa program to lure workers from Mexico, with a Georgia federal judge trimming out some discrimination and fair labor claims, but allowing several others to proceed.

  • August 29, 2025

    EEOC, Sam's Club Strike $60K Deal In ADA Suit

    The operators of warehouse club retail store Sam's Club will pay $60,000 to end a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit alleging a worker was refused accommodations and ultimately fired after attempting to return to work following an automobile accident.

  • August 29, 2025

    Amazon Workers Get Class Nod In Military Leave Bias Suit

    A New York federal judge handed class certification to a group of workers alleging Amazon did not provide equal leave benefits to service members compared to those who took other forms of leave such as jury duty, although he found the class representative couldn't lead the case.

  • August 29, 2025

    US Education Dept. Finds Denver Schools Flouted Title IX

    The first Title IX investigation undertaken by the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights since President Donald Trump returned to office found Denver Public Schools violated Title IX by converting two bathrooms at a local high school to multi-stall, all-gender bathrooms, according to a Thursday news release from the OCR.

  • August 29, 2025

    Employment Lawyers' Weekly DEI Cheat Sheet

    The city of Seattle has attempted to block the Trump administration from enforcing executive orders that condition federal grants partly on recipients curtailing diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and the state of Texas was hit with a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a law curbing inclusivity in public schools. Here, Law360 looks at notable DEI-related legal developments from the past week.

  • August 29, 2025

    GardaWorld Can't Avoid Tobacco, Vaccine Health Fee Suit

    A North Carolina federal judge trimmed — but refused to toss — a proposed class action challenging a security company's health plan surcharges to employees who refused COVID-19 vaccinations and who use tobacco, opening discovery on claims that the fees violated nondiscrimination provisions in federal benefits law.

  • August 29, 2025

    5th Circ. Upholds Dallas Win In Pay, Race Bias Case

    A former management assistant for the city of Dallas failed to demonstrate that she was paid less than a colleague because of her race and her retaliation and discrimination claims also could not stand, the Fifth Circuit ruled Friday.

  • August 29, 2025

    NY Forecast: 2nd Circ. Hears Northwell COVID Vaccine Suit

    This week, the Second Circuit will consider whether to revive a suit brought by former healthcare workers who claimed they were discriminated against on the basis of their religion when they were fired for refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine.

  • August 29, 2025

    UPenn Prof Suspended For Racist Remarks Loses Bias Claim

    University of Pennsylvania law professor Amy Wax lost her federal discrimination claims against the school for suspending her over disparaging comments she made about minorities, with a judge finding that she was disciplined for racist speech, not because of her own race.

  • August 29, 2025

    Ill. Jury Sides With Ex-CTA Worker In Vax Bias Lawsuit

    An Illinois federal jury on Friday awarded a former Chicago Transit Authority employee $425,000 in damages, finding the transit agency liable on his religious discrimination claim after he was terminated following his refusal to take the COVID-19 vaccine and denied an exemption to the agency's vaccine requirement.

  • August 29, 2025

    Calif. Forecast: NLRB Fights Co. With Union-Busting Claims

    In the coming week, attorneys should watch for arguments in a National Labor Relations Board case against an environmental and engineering consultant. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters on deck in California.

  • August 29, 2025

    Single Slur Not Enough For Retaliation Suit, Judge Says

    A Michigan federal judge stood by her dismissal of an Arab American worker's suit claiming a car dealership fired him for protesting a supervisor's racist language while following up on her original ruling to say that opposition to the single use of a slur isn't enough to establish a retaliation case.

  • August 29, 2025

    Wage And Hour Laws To Look Out For This Fall

    Workers in Maine will get extra wages if their employer cancels or cuts back their shift last minute, and employers in Cleveland will have to abide by new salary history and pay transparency requirements. Here, Law360 looks at these and other wage and hour and equal pay laws coming in the fall.

  • August 28, 2025

    10th Circ. Told Okla. 'Race Theory' Law Must Go

    The Tenth Circuit is being told it must ensure academic freedom for the students of Oklahoma, whose constitutional rights and "the very nature of the classroom as a place that nurtures inquiry and discussion" are being undermined by a state law restricting what they can be taught.

  • August 28, 2025

    Ex-Katten Partner's $67M Age Bias Suit Stayed For Arbitration

    A Manhattan federal judge stayed a $67 million discrimination lawsuit brought by a former Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP partner alleging the firm pushed him out of the aircraft-finance practice group, pressured him to resign and then fired him because of his age, saying there is an arbitration agreement at play.

  • August 28, 2025

    Car Dealership Settles EEOC Hiring Bias Suit For $275K

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced Thursday that it struck a $275,000 deal with a Missouri car dealership to end a gender bias suit claiming the business only hired women for office jobs and men for sales jobs.

  • August 28, 2025

    Religion Didn't Drive Ex-CTA Worker's Vax Refusal, Jury Hears

    A former Chicago Transit Authority electrician hasn't met his burden of proving religious discrimination was behind his termination when he refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19, and his refusal was based on personal preference and health and safety concerns about the jab, an Illinois federal jury heard Thursday.

  • August 28, 2025

    White Workers Say Shell Reorganization Was Discriminatory

    Shell was hit with a federal lawsuit this week accusing it of implementing a "pretextual departmental reorganization" that discriminated against several white employees.

  • August 28, 2025

    Ex-State Farm VP Sues Activists Over Secretly Recording Date

    A former State Farm executive has sued political activist James O'Keefe and a woman who lied about her intentions to date him, claiming they violated Illinois' eavesdropping statute by secretly recording his comments about State Farm's diversity efforts and rate hikes and later posting misleading videos of him, costing him his job.

  • August 28, 2025

    8th Circ. Brings Back EEOC Harassment Suit Against BNSF

    The Eighth Circuit on Thursday revived a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit accusing BNSF Railway Co. of failing to adequately safeguard women at a Nebraska rail yard from rampant harassment, saying the legal standard applied by a trial court was too rigid.

  • August 28, 2025

    School Union Inks $110K Deal To End EEOC Race Bias Suit

    A school district labor union has agreed to pay $110,000 to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it discriminated against a Black custodian by challenging his promotion, according to a filing Thursday in Illinois federal court.

  • August 28, 2025

    Ex-Law Firm Worker Gets More Time To Give Info In Bias Suit

    A New Jersey state judge gave the attorney for a woman suing a Garden State law firm in a workplace discrimination case additional time to respond to overdue discovery requests after he failed to reply for more than seven months.

Expert Analysis

  • How To Comply With Chicago's New Paid Leave Ordinance

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    Chicago's new Paid Leave and Paid Sick and Safe Leave Ordinance went into effect earlier this month, so employers subject to the new rules should update leave policies, train supervisors and deliver notice as they seek compliance, say Alison Crane and Sarah Gasperini at Jackson Lewis.

  • 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.