In Adeniji v. U.S. Department of Commerce Census Bureau NY Regional Office, 2020 WL 882166 (S.D.N.Y. 2020), the court dismissed the claims by plaintiff – a Census Bureau employee – for employment discrimination. Initially, the court dismissed plaintiff’s claims of discrimination under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, the NYS Human Rights Law, and the New York…
Read More Census Bureau Employee’s Employment Discrimination Claims DismissedIt has been reported that Michael Bloomberg will permit his company to release 3 women who complained about certain comments from non-disclosure agreements they had signed. The above article quotes Mr. Bloomberg as saying: If any of them want to be released from their NDA so that they can talk about those allegations, they should…
Read More Bloomberg to Permit Women to Seek Releases from NDAsIn Averbeck v. Culinary Inst. of Am., 2020 NY Slip Op 01139 (App. Div. 2d Dept. Feb. 19, 2020), the court affirmed the dismissal of plaintiff’s national origin discrimination claim against the Culinary Institute of America. Plaintiff, who was born and raised in Germany, was employed by Culinary Institute of America, from November 2004 through May…
Read More Employment Discrimination Claim Against Culinary Institute of America DismissedIn Lapushner v. Admedus Ltd et al, 2020 WL 777332 (S.D.N.Y. 2020), a sexual harassment case, the court held that Minnesota, not New York, was the proper venue for this case. The court granted defendant’s motion to transfer venue under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 1404(a). From the decision: “The location of operative events is…
Read More Court Transfers Sexual Harassment Case to Minnesota, Under FRCP 1404From Ajoku v New York State Office of Temporary Disability Assistance, No. 159104/18, 2020 WL 886160, at *4 (N.Y. Sup Ct, New York County Feb. 20, 2020): [T]he court declines to dismiss plaintiff’s hostile work environment claim against OTDA and Contento. A racially hostile work environment exists under the NYSHRL “[w]hen the workplace is permeated…
Read More Nigerian Man’s Race-Based Hostile Work Environment Claim Survives DismissalIn King v. Daniel Shoes, No. 13080/12, 2018-10611, 2020 N.Y. Slip Op. 01151, 2020 WL 808729 (N.Y.A.D. 2 Dept., Feb. 19, 2020) – a sexual harassment/hostile work environment case – the Appellate Division affirmed a lower court’s award of a default judgment against defendants on the issue of liability pursuant to 22 NYCRR 202.27(a) and…
Read More Sexual Harassment/Hostile Work Environment Default Judgment for Plaintiff Upheld; Defendants Did Not Demonstrate a Reasonable Excuse for Non-Appearance at TrialIn Monzac v. 1141 Elder Towers LLC, 2020 NY Slip Op 01243 (App. Div. 1st Dept. Feb. 20, 2020) – a personal injury slip-and-fall case – the court reversed the lower court’s directed verdict for defendant. From the decision: Plaintiff’s trial evidence established prima facie that defendant had constructive notice of the water on the…
Read More Evidence of Water on Lobby Floor Meets Summary Judgment Burden in Personal Injury Slip/Fall CaseIn Matter of New York State Unified Ct. Sys. v. New York State Div. of Human Rights, 2020 NY Slip Op 01252 (App. Div. 1st Dept. Feb. 20, 2020), the court upheld a finding of disability discrimination on behalf of a hearing-impaired court officer. From the decision: The Commissioner’s finding of discrimination is supported by…
Read More Court Upholds Finding of Disability Discrimination of Court OfficerIn the employment discrimination context, one issue that typically arises is whether an employee has sustained an actionable “adverse employment action.” Not every action that might be perceived as negative or otherwise disadvantageous qualifies. A recent example of a court addressing this issue is Dedjoe v. Dr. Mark T. Esper, in his official capacity as…
Read More Retaliation Dismissal Affirmed; Being Told to “Cool Off” Not an “Adverse Employment Action”In a recent decision, captioned International Franchise Association et al v. City of New York, NY Supreme Court, NY County, Index No. 655987/2018 (Feb. 13, 2020), the court rejected a challenge to New York City’s Fair Workweek Law, codified at Title 20, Chapter 12 of the New York City Administrative Code. Judge Engoron concluded that…
Read More New York Judge Dismisses Challenge to NYC’s Fair Workweek Law