Discrimination

  • December 16, 2025

    2nd Circ. Tosses Ex-CFTC Atty's Religious Bias Case

    The Second Circuit on Tuesday threw out a religious bias claim brought by a former U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission attorney, reasoning that he hadn't shown how he had been harmed by a temporary order at an agency he no longer works for.

  • December 16, 2025

    10th Circ. Backs Geico's Win In Black Sales Rep's Bias Suit

    The Tenth Circuit declined Tuesday to reinstate a Black former Geico sales representative's race discrimination and retaliation lawsuit, finding no evidence of pretext in the insurance giant's performance and credential-based rationale for firing him.

  • December 16, 2025

    SHRM Flouted ADA By Denying Service Dog, Applicant Says

    The Society for Human Resource Management was sued in Virginia federal court Tuesday by an applicant who alleged she had a job offer pulled after she sought permission to have a trained service dog accompany her to work.

  • December 16, 2025

    Haribo Can't Sink Fired Black Exec's Race, Gender Bias Suit

    A Texas federal judge on Tuesday narrowed but refused to dismiss a Black former Haribo executive's suit alleging the candy company fired her and accused her of stealing a company car following her bias complaints, ruling a jury needs to probe whether gender and race discrimination was at play.

  • December 16, 2025

    2 Cops Remain In Ex-NJ Judge's Suit Over 2013 Arrest

    A New Jersey federal court has refused to throw out a former Garden State judge's civil rights lawsuit against two police officials, ruling that disputes over whether the officers fabricated or withheld evidence surrounding her 2013 arrest must be decided by a jury.

  • December 16, 2025

    $1.7M Verdict Tainted By Confusion, NJ Housing Agency Says

    Camden, New Jersey's housing authority asked a Garden State federal court for a new trial after a jury awarded $1.7 million to former and current employees who claimed they were terminated for raising concerns about corruption, arguing that the jury improperly decided questions of law and that the jury charges and verdict sheet contradicted each other.

  • December 16, 2025

    DOJ Says NY Court Can't Handle Maurene Comey Firing Suit

    The U.S. Department of Justice has said former prosecutor Maurene Comey's suit challenging the circumstances of her firing should be dismissed, arguing that it is an attempt to sidestep the Civil Service Reform Act.

  • December 16, 2025

    White Atlanta Worker Says EEOC Race Charge Got Him Fired

    A white worker in his 60s claimed in a Georgia federal court suit that the city of Atlanta fired him out of age and race discrimination after he complained to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that his Black and younger colleagues received preferential treatment.

  • December 15, 2025

    9th Circ. Backs Honeywell Over Engineer's Retaliation Claims

    The Ninth Circuit rejected an ex-Honeywell engineer's challenge to her firing after voicing concerns about avionic software that was part of a Boeing defense contract, finding any potential fraud to the government was too far removed to support a retaliation claim.

  • December 15, 2025

    Performance Issues Doom Worker's ADA Suit, 11th Circ. Says

    The Eleventh Circuit backed the dismissal Monday of a Miami-Dade County worker's disability bias suit claiming she was fired from its animal services division after being diagnosed with a brain tumor, ruling she failed to undermine the county's position that she was terminated for repeated performance issues.

  • December 15, 2025

    EEOC Must Turn Over Psych Records In Sex Harassment Case

    A Burger King franchisee can access female employees' medical and psychological records in a sexual harassment case from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, a Kansas federal magistrate judge ruled, rejecting the EEOC's argument that it could withhold the records because the agency asserted "garden variety" emotional distress claims.

  • December 15, 2025

    Former DLA Piper Associate Alleges Ex-Partner Raped Her

    A former Boston-based DLA Piper associate on Monday launched a state lawsuit alleging she was raped at the firm's Delaware office by a former partner purportedly known for heavy drinking and inappropriate workplace conduct toward female subordinates.

  • December 15, 2025

    Fla. Health Clinic Chain Settles EEOC Age Bias Probe

    A healthcare provider with multiple clinics in Florida will pay $64,000 after a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigation found reasonable cause to conclude that the company fired a worker over his age, the EEOC said Monday. 

  • December 15, 2025

    Wells Fargo Bucks CFO's Deposition In Disability Bias Suit

    Wells Fargo wants to block the deposition of its chief financial officer in a senior finance manager's disability bias lawsuit, saying he has no personal knowledge of the claims underpinning her allegations and suggesting that her attorney's "behavior" needs "curtailing."

  • December 15, 2025

    EEOC, PepsiCo Reach $270K Deal To End Vision Bias Suit

    PepsiCo will pay $270,000 to end suit by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging it fired a blind call center employee after refusing to find a screen-reading tool compatible with its software system that would allow the worker to do his job, according to a North Carolina federal court filing.

  • December 15, 2025

    Fired Black Delta Worker Ends Race Bias, Retaliation Suit

    A Black former Delta Air Lines employee dropped his suit claiming the airline fired him for voicing concerns that he was paid less than his non-Black colleagues, according to a filing in Georgia federal court.

  • December 15, 2025

    New York Tire Dealer, EEOC Settle Religious Bias Probe

    A New York-based tire dealer agreed to pay just under $304,000 to resolve an investigation into what the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleged was a decision to turn away an applicant due to his request for time off to observe the Sabbath, the agency announced Monday.

  • December 15, 2025

    High Court Won't Hear Illinois County's ADA Back Pay Appeal

    The U.S. Supreme Court declined an invitation Monday from Cook County, Illinois, to review a Seventh Circuit ruling that said a former corrections officer can seek back pay after winning a disability discrimination verdict.

  • December 12, 2025

    Boeing Unit Owes $2.5M In Employment Bias Trial

    A Kansas federal jury has said Spirit AeroSystems Inc. must pay a former employee, a white mechanic, $2.5 million for firing him after a period of sustained conflict with a Hispanic employee that eventually led the mechanic to call the police.

  • December 12, 2025

    Trump's 2016 Campaign Must Face Bias Suit, Judge Says

    A New York federal judge said Friday President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign committee can't escape state and New York City claims from an ex-consultant who worked on the campaign mostly in the city that she was effectively fired for becoming pregnant, ruling her Florida residency is immaterial.

  • December 12, 2025

    Employment Attys Share Tales Of Holiday Parties Gone Awry

    As companies gear up to celebrate the holidays and boost morale with festive events, it pays to remember getting too relaxed can can leave employers with a legal hangover. Here, management-side attorneys share examples of problematic holiday party behavior — some based in reality, some hypothetical — as well as tips to help stave off similar gaffes.

  • December 12, 2025

    Exec Says Netflix Used Vax Status As Cover For Biased Firing

    Netflix fired a production executive for refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccine out of retaliation for her complaints that the company mocked the religious beliefs of the unvaccinated and pushed a sexually charged company culture, according to a bias suit the former employee filed in California state court.

  • December 12, 2025

    4th Circ. Won't Revive Black Worker's Promotion Bias Suit

    The Fourth Circuit backed a community college's win Friday in a Black former employee's suit claiming her race and gender caused her to lose out on a promotion, ruling she failed to rebut the college's explanation that the white, male candidate who got the role was more qualified.

  • December 12, 2025

    Ex-NJ Municipal Court Admin Says COVID Got Her Fired

    The former municipal court administrator for West Windsor Township, New Jersey, has alleged that the town failed to accommodate her disability when it fired her instead of giving her a short medical leave of absence after she contracted COVID-19.

  • December 12, 2025

    2nd Circ. Probes ConEd's Sudden Firing Of Atty Alleging Bias

    The Second Circuit raised questions during a hearing about Con Edison's decision to terminate a longtime company lawyer shortly after she complained her boss was targeting her because she's an older woman, hinting some support for the attorney's fight to have her discrimination suit reinstated.

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.