Sexual Harassment

Below is the state court complaint recently filed by Emily Feliciano against Starbucks and assistant manager Anthony Nunez. Among other things, plaintiff alleges that Nunez sexually harassed plaintiff verbally (such as by making an obscene observation that she was “wet”, telling her to call him “daddy”, and demanding sex) and physically (such as by trapping her…

Read More Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Starbucks
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In Pryor v. Jaffe & Asher, the Southern District of New York held that plaintiff adequately stated claims for hostile work environment, gender discrimination, and constructive discharge. Here are the facts, taken from plaintiff’s complaint: Defendant Jaffe & Asher is a law firm doing business in New York, New York. Defendant Jeffrey Tseng, an employee…

Read More Plaintiff Sufficiently Alleged Hostile Work Environment, Gender Discrimination, and Constructive Discharge Claims Against Law Firm
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In Pecile v. Titan Capital Group, the Appellate Division, First Department, ruled on a number of discovery issues relating to, among other issues, plaintiffs’ social media postings. The case made headlines a few years back (e.g., here, here, and here) due to its racy allegations that financier Russell Abrams forced his assistant, plaintiff Danielle Pecile, to get prints of honeymoon…

Read More Court Rules on Discovery Issues in “Topless Wife Photo” Sexual Harassment Case Against Titan Capital and Russell Abrams
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In Matter of Arcuri v. Kirkland, the Appellate Division, Third Department annulled a decision by a State Division of Human Rights (SDHR) Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) that GPA Development Corporation subjected its employees, Adam Bargy and Orlando Colon, to a hostile work environment based on sexual harassment and retaliated against them for complaining about it. The…

Read More Court Annuls NYS Division of Human Rights Finding That Male Employees Were Subjected to Gender-Based Hostile Work Environment and Retaliation
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In Anderson v. Edmiston & Co., Inc., the Supreme Court, New York County recently held that plaintiff sufficiently alleged gender discrimination, sexual harassment/hostile work environment, and retaliation under the New York City Human Rights Law. Plaintiff alleged that while employed by defendant company, her supervisor, Robert Shepherd, made various remarks implying “his disrespect for women…

Read More Plaintiff Sufficiently Alleged Gender Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, and Retaliation Claims Under the New York City Human Rights Law
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In a recent decision (Sloth v. Constellation Brands), the Western District of New York declined to give collateral estoppel effect to the findings of the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB). Plaintiff alleged that she was subjected to sexual harassment at work.  The WCB denied her benefits, finding in part that she made false…

Read More Workers’ Compensation Board Findings Not Entitled to Collateral Estoppel Effect in Sexual Harassment Case
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In Reynolds v. All Island Media, Inc., the New York Supreme Court, Suffolk County, held that plaintiff Leona Reynolds adequately stated claims arising from the alleged sexual harassment by her supervisor, Angelo Donofrio. The court summarized plaintiff’s allegations as follows: The amended complaint alleges, among other things, that plaintiff was sexually harassed by Donofrio throughout…

Read More At-Will Employee Stated Claim For Sexual Harassment and Breach of the Contractual Obligation of Good Faith and Fair Dealing
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News recently broke about a man, William Iglesias, who was arrested for secretly recording female employees in the bathroom of photography studio Foto Y Video Alexander in Brentwood. You can read about the story here and here. I previously wrote about a case, Hughes v. Pacienza, involving similar conduct. There, the court granted plaintiff Hughes…

Read More Toilet-Spy Boss: Deja Vu?
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‘Tis the season for company holiday parties, where the awkward mingling with co-workers and the free flow of alcohol can combine to create uncomfortable and humiliating social situations and, in some cases, possible legal liability for discrimination and harassment. Despite various warnings about maintaining professionalism, it seems that every year there are people who embarrass themselves…

Read More Company Holiday Parties, Professionalism, and Discrimination/Sexual Harassment
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The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently announced a $350,000 settlement in the case captioned EEOC v. La Rana Hawaii, LLC d/b/a Señor Frog’s & Altres, Inc., Case No. CV-11-00799 LEK BMK, which it filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii. From the EEOC press release: The [EEOC alleged] that at least…

Read More $350,000 Settlement in Senor Frog Sexual Harassment Case
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