August 2020

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In Lowman v. NVI LLC, 2020 WL 4199956 (2d Cir. July 22, 2020) (Summary Order), the Second Circuit, inter alia, affirmed the dismissal of plaintiff’s religious discrimination case asserted under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Plaintiff asserted, inter alia, that defendant violated his rights under both statutes by refusing to hire…

Read More Religious Discrimination Claim Dismissal Affirmed; Deviating From Federally-Mandated SSN Disclosure Would be an “Undue Hardship”
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In Barton et al v. Warren County et al, 2020 WL 4569465 (N.D.N.Y. August 7, 2020), the court, inter alia, dismissed plaintiffs’ gender/pregnancy-based hostile work environment claims asserted under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.[1]Here, for the sake of narrowing the discussion, I’ll discuss the court’s evaluation of the claims asserted by…

Read More Pregnancy-Related Title VII Hostile Work Environment Claim Dismissed; Three Alleged Remarks in One-Month Period Insufficiently “Severe” or “Pervasive”
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A recent decision, Hager v. Steele, 2020 WL 4345735 (S.D.N.Y. July 29, 2020), provides a neat refresher of Civil Procedure basics, and could easily form the basis for a first-year law school exam – or even a Bar Exam (‘Tis the season) – question. Plaintiff initially filed the action in state court – alleging, inter…

Read More Age Discrimination Case Will Remain in Federal Court; Motion to Remand Denied
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In Gallas v. Chopard USA Ltd., No. 158114/2019, 2020 WL 4547124 (N.Y. Sup Ct, New York County Aug. 03, 2020), the court granted defendant’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s “prima facie tort” claim, as well as its motion for sanctions against plaintiff and plaintiff’s attorney under 22 N.Y.C.R.R. § 130-1.1. In this case, plaintiff seeks to…

Read More “Prima Facie Tort” Claim Dismissed, but its Assertion Was Not Sanctionable
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In Abadir v. Center One, LLC, 2020 WL 4474070 (W.D.N.Y. August 4, 2020), the court, inter alia, dismissed plaintiff’s age-based hostile work environment claim under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. The court summarized the black-letter law as follows: To oppose summary judgment on a hostile work environment claim, this Court once held…

Read More Age Discrimination Claim Dismissed; Favoritism Existed But Insufficiently Connected to Age
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In Cooney v. City of New York Dept. of Sanitation, No. 650113/2013, 2020 WL 4391481 (N.Y. Sup Ct, New York County July 30, 2020), the court granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment dismissing plaintiff’s complaint asserting disability discrimination arising from the Department of Sanitation’s rejection of plaintiff as a candidate for employment. In this case,…

Read More Disability Discrimination Claim Against Dept. of Sanitation Dismissed; No “Reasonable Accommodation” For Skin Condition
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In Mancilla v. ABM Industries, Inc., 2020 WL 4432122(S.D.N.Y. July 29, 2020), a sexual harassment/assault case, the court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration. The facts of this case, as alleged, are horrific: Plaintiff reported to work on the night of September 17, 2018, and was informed that her ABM supervisor that night would be…

Read More Arbitration Compelled in Sexual Harassment/Assault Case Against ABM
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In Matter of Chaplin v .New York State Div. of Human Rights, 2020 NY Slip Op 04302 (App. Div. 2d Dept. July 29, 2020), the Appellate Division, Second Department confirmed the New York State Division of Human Rights’ award of $5,000 for compensatory damages for mental anguish, and no damages for, inter alia, lost income,…

Read More Court Denies Petition Seeking Review of $5k Award in Employment Discrimination/Retaliation Case
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In Reppert v. New York State Department of State, 19-cv-01518, 2020 WL 4346932 (N.D.N.Y. July 28, 2020), the court, inter alia, dismissed plaintiff’s race discrimination claim asserted under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Initially, the court explained the well-established law: Because discrimination claims implicate an employer’s usually unstated intent and state…

Read More Race Discrimination Complaint Dismissed; Allegations of “Racist Behavior” Held Insufficiently Specific
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In a recent decision, captioned Judd v. Weinstein, 2:18-cv-05724 (9th Cir. July 29, 2020), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit revived Ashely Judd’s sexual harassment lawsuit against Harvey Weinstein, overturning a district court’s dismissal of plaintiff’s claim under § 51.9 of the California Civil Code. From the Opinion: In sum, we conclude…

Read More Ninth Circuit Revives Ashley Judd’s Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Harvey Weinstein
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