Pleading

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In Lekettey v. City of New York, No. 15-1169-CV, 2016 WL 482109 (2d Cir. Feb. 8, 2016), the court affirmed a lower court’s dismissal of plaintiff’s complaint alleging sexual harassment. There are generally two theories of sexual harassment recognized under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964: (1) “quid pro quo” sexual harassment,…

Read More Sexual Harassment Allegations Insufficiently Alleged, Notwithstanding Assertion of “Fondling”
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In Santiago-Mendez v. City of New York, 2016 WL 416877 (N.Y. App. Div. 1st Dept. Feb. 4, 2016), the court held that plaintiff’s non-time-barred claims for race, national origin, and gender discrimination as against the City of New York and two individual defendants should not have been dismissed. Here is the Order appealed from; here is plaintiff’s complaint. From the…

Read More Decision: NYPD Detective’s Race, National Origin, and Gender Discrimination Claims Proceed
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If a lawsuit is a house, then the complaint is its foundation. Buried in a footnote of Brannon v. City of New York, No. 09CV4335-LTS, 2016 WL 270399 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 21, 2016) is an important pleading point for employment discrimination cases – namely, that the failure to plead a particular theory of recovery (here, hostile work…

Read More Failure to Plead Hostile Work Environment Results in Dismissal of That Claim
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In Marcus v. Leviton Mfg. Co., No. 15CV656SJFGRB, 2016 WL 74415 (E.D.N.Y. Jan. 6, 2016), the Eastern District of New York dismissed plaintiff’s age discrimination case for failure to state a claim under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). Although this plaintiff loses, Judge Feuerstein’s decision is instructive regarding what judges look for when evaluating…

Read More Pleading Lessons From a Dismissed Age Discrimination Case
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In Taft v. Agric. Bank of China Ltd., No. 15 CIV. 5321 (PAE), 2016 WL 80209 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 6, 2016), the Southern District of New York ruled on defendant’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s whistleblower retaliation claim under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). Plaintiff alleged that “she was subjected to frequent sexually charged comments and gender-related…

Read More Court Interprets Retaliation Provision of the Bank Secrecy Act
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In Magnotti v. Crossroads Healthcare Mgmt., LLC, No. 14-CV-6679 ILG RML, 2015 WL 5173528 (E.D.N.Y. Sept. 3, 2015), the court held the plaintiff, a pharmacist, plausibly alleged a claim of retaliation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. It explained: In order to state a claim for retaliation, plaintiff must allege that (1) he engaged in an…

Read More Pharmacist’s Complaint of Reduction in Hours After Surgery Supports ADA Retaliation Claim
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In Alexander-Callender v. NBTY et al, No. 14-CV-2462 (JS)(AYS), 2015 WL 9581819 (E.D.N.Y. Dec. 30, 2015), the Eastern District of New York dismissed, as insufficiently pled, plaintiff’s sexual harassment (hostile work environment), race discrimination, and retaliation claims. In her complaint, plaintiff alleged that a co-worker, for example, stared at plaintiff in a “sexually inappropriate manner”…

Read More Sexual Harassment Hostile Work Environment Claim Insufficiently Alleged
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In Dooley v. JetBlue Airways Corp., No. 15-1356-CV, 2015 WL 9261293 (2d Cir. Dec. 18, 2015), a Summary Order, the Second Circuit vacated the dismissal of plaintiff’s claim of disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Initially, the court held, contrary to the district court, that plaintiff sufficiently alleged discrimination under the ADA.…

Read More Plaintiff Sufficiently Alleged Disability Discrimination Against JetBlue
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In Dingle v. Bimbo Bakeries USA/Entenmann’s, No. 14-1215-CV, 2015 WL 8952903 (2d Cir. Dec. 16, 2015), the Second Circuit vacated the dismissal, for failure to state a claim under FRCP 12(b)(6), of plaintiff’s employment discrimination complaints. Plaintiff’s allegations, in a nutshell: Dingle alleged that a photo of a nude man resembling Dingle was distributed among employees who made…

Read More Second Circuit Revives “Perceived Sexual Orientation Discrimination” Claim
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In Tekle v. Wegmans Food Markets, Inc., No. 15-CV-6386, 2015 WL 8485273 (W.D.N.Y. Dec. 9, 2015), the court granted defendant’s motion under FRCP 12(b)(6) to dismiss plaintiff’s race discrimination, hostile work environment, and retaliation claims. This case illustrates that even arguably “disturbing and arguably race-based” incidents are not necessarily enough to establish violations of the…

Read More Threat to “Hang” Plaintiff Insufficient to State Hostile Work Environment Claim
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