In Doe v. New York City Police Department et al, No. 118182/09, 12763, 2019-3747, 2021 N.Y. Slip Op. 00009, 2021 WL 27523 (N.Y.A.D. 1 Dept., Jan. 05, 2021), the court, inter alia, unanimously reversed the lower court’s order granting summary judgment for defendants on plaintiff’s claim of retaliation asserted under the New York State and City Human Rights Laws.
The court also restored plaintiff’s sexual orientation discrimination claim; I wrote about that aspect of the court’s decision here.
As to plaintiff’s retaliation claim, the court stated:
Finally, we also restore plaintiff’s a claim for retaliation. An employer’s conduct after the employee engaged in protected activity does not constitute retaliation where it is a continuation of the course of the employer’s conduct before the employee engaged in the protected activity (Melman v. Montefiore Med. Ctr., 98 A.D.3d 107, 129, 946 N.Y.S.2d 27 [1st Dept. 2012] ). However, the complaint here alleges at least some “new” or escalated conduct after the protected activities took place (see O’Rourke v. National Foreign Trade Council, Inc., 176 A.D.3d 517, 518, 110 N.Y.S.3d 104 [1st Dept. 2019] [“Whether the motivation for this conduct was retaliation or continued discrimination cannot be determined at this stage of the litigation”]).