Employment Discrimination

The Appellate Division, First Department, in Matter of Law Offs. of Oliver Zhou, PLLC v. New York State Div. of Human Rights, 2015 NY Slip Op 04569 (App. Div. 1st Dept. May 28, 2015) recently upheld the determination of the State Division of Human Rights that the petitioners violated the State Human Rights Law. In…

Read More Termination After Showing Employer Sexual Harassment Complaint Supports State Division Award
Share This:

In Orange v. Leake & Watts Inc., No. 13-CV-6110 KBF, 2015 WL 2340649 (S.D.N.Y. May 15, 2015), the court granted defendant’s motion for summary judgment and dismissed plaintiff’s race discrimination and retaliation claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Plaintiff, an African American assistant teacher, alleged “that she suffered an adverse employment…

Read More Court Dismisses Race Discrimination Claim; Disciplinary Notice and Negative Evaluation Were Not “Adverse Employment Actions”
Share This:

In Leon v. NYC Dept. of Education, a Summary Order dated May 22, 2015, the Second Circuit vacated the dismissal of plaintiff’s age/disability discrimination, retaliation, and accommodation claims, and held that a finding pursuant to NY Education § 3020-a that a teacher was fired for “cause” does not necessarily preclude a viable claim for (e.g.) discriminatory termination…

Read More Employment Discrimination Claims Not Collaterally Estopped By Finding That Teacher Was Fired For “Cause” Under New York Education Law § 3020-a
Share This:

A recent decision, Moultrie v. NYS Dep’t of Corr. & Cmty. Supervision, No. 13-CV-5138 NSR, 2015 WL 2151827 (S.D.N.Y. May 7, 2015), elaborates on how to prove employment discrimination with so-called “comparator” evidence. In this case, plaintiff, a Corrections Officer trainee at Sing Sing prison, was fired for, among other things, bringing a SIM card…

Read More Gender Discrimination Complaint Dismissed; Alleged Male Comparators Engaged in Less Serious Conduct
Share This:

Here is the federal court complaint filed by Philippa Okoye against her employer deVere Group on May 18, 2015. She alleges hostile work environment sexual harassment, gender discrimination, associational race discrimination (in light of her husband, Lawrence Okoye’s, race), religion-based discrimination, and retaliation under the New York City Human Rights Law.

Read More Philippa Okoye’s Employment Discrimination Lawsuit Against DeVere Group
Share This:

In Cooney v. City of New York Dept. of Sanitation, 2015 NY Slip Op 03465 (App. Div. 1st Dept. Apr. 28, 2015), the Appellate Division, First Department reversed a lower court decision to dismiss plaintiff’s failure-to-hire disability discrimination claims for failure to state causes of action under the New York State and New York City Human…

Read More Psoriasis-Suffering Plaintiff Suffiiently Pleads Disability Discrimination
Share This:

In Daniel v. AutoZone, Inc. (NDNY May 6, 2015), the Northern District of New York denied defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s race-based hostile work environment claims against the individual defendants under 42 USC 1981 and the New York State Human Rights Law. Here is the applicable law: [A]n individual defendant may be liable under section 1981.…

Read More Hostile Work Environment Claims Under 42 USC 1981 and State Human Rights Law Continue
Share This:

In Gewirtz v. New York City Dept. of Educ., 2015 NY Slip Op 50713(U) (NY Sup. Qns. Cty. May 4, 2015), the court denied defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s disability discrimination (failure to accommodate) and retaliation claims under the New York State Human Rights Law (SHRL) and New York City Human Rights Law (CHRL).…

Read More Teacher’s Disability Discrimination (Failure to Accommodate) and Retaliation Claims Continue
Share This:

In Sobhi v. Sociedad Textil Lonia Corp., No. 13 CIV. 8073 AT MHD, 2014 WL 7474338 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 30, 2014), the Southern District of New York held that plaintiff adequately alleged a “failure to accommodate” disability discrimination claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). From the decision: Although Defendant initially granted Plaintiff eight weeks…

Read More Employer’s Firing Plaintiff During Recovery Plausibly Suggests Failure to Accommodate Under the Americans with Disabilities Act
Share This:

In Raghavendra v. Bollinger, 2015 NY Slip Op 03775 (App. Div. 1st Dept. May 5, 2015), the court affirmed the lower court’s grant of summary judgment to defendant. This employment discrimination case (asserted under the New York State and City Human Rights Laws) illustrates how courts evaluate so-called failure to rehire cases, for statute of…

Read More Initial Rehire Refusal Triggers Statute of Limitations; Discrimination Action Was Time-Barred
Share This: