In Kane v. 247 Real Media, 14-cv-2482, 2015 WL 1623832 (SDNY April 7, 2015), the court explained and applied the “administrative exhaustion” requirement of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Plaintiff – a transgender woman – alleged that she was subjected to discrimination based on her race, color, gender, and national origin.…
Read More Failure to File at EEOC Dooms Federal Transgender Discrimination ClaimsIn Graham v. Macy’s, Inc., SDNY 14-cv-3192 (March 23, 2015), Southern District Judge Paul Engelmayer granted defendant Macys’ motion to dismiss the pro se plaintiff’s claims of discrimination based on disability (here, arthritis and bipolar disorder) under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Although Judge Engelmayer determined that plaintiff’s complaint was deficient – citing, for example,…
Read More Disability Discrimination RoadmapIn Heiser v. Collorafi et al. (NDNY March 9, 2015), the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York held that plaintiff, a former employee of the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, sufficiently alleged hostile work environment sexual harassment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of…
Read More Inappropriate Emails and Sexual Comments Plausibly Support Sexual Harassment Hostile Work Environment ClaimIn Figueroa v. RSquared NY Inc. (EDNY March 3, 2015), the Eastern District of New York held that plaintiff stated a claim for “quid pro quo” sexual harassment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the New York State Human Rights Law. In sum, plaintiff alleged that while on a leave of absence…
Read More Conditioning Return to Work on “Hooking Up” With “De Facto Supervisor” is Plausible Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment Theory, Court HoldsIn Rodriguez v. City of New York, decided January 23, 2015, the Eastern District of New York held that plaintiff, a NYPD officer, sufficiently alleged a claim for disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights Law. Plaintiff alleges that the…
Read More NYPD Officer Characterized as “Delusional” Plausibly Alleges Disability Discrimination ClaimsIn Carter v. Verizon, decided January 20, 2015, the Southern District of New York dismissed all of plaintiff’s gender and age discrimination claims, except for his gender discrimination / hostile work environment claim under the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL). After dismissing plaintiff’s federal and state law claims, the court proceeded to assess plaintiff’s…
Read More Male Employee (Barely) Survives Dismissal of Hostile Work Environment Claim Under the New York City Human Rights LawIn the case of Vale v. Great Neck Water Pollution Control District, decided January 20, 2015, the Eastern District of New York held that the plaintiff sufficiently alleged various claims – including discrimination, failure to accommodate, and retaliation – under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Plaintiff alleged that she was subjected to unfair treatment in…
Read More Plaintiff Sufficiently Alleges Employment Discrimination Based on Disability (Broken Wrist)In Albin v. LVMH Moet Louis Vuitton, the Southern District of New York held that plaintiff plausibly alleged claims of pregnancy discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (of which the Pregnancy Discrimination Act is a part), the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights…
Read More Plaintiff Plausibly Alleges Pregnancy Discrimination Against Louis VuittonIn Juarez v. Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co., the Southern District of New York held that plaintiff stated a claim under 42 U.S.C. 1981 for discrimination against aliens without green cards. Section 1981 prohibits both public and private actors from discriminating on the basis of race or alienage in the making and enforcement of contracts,…
Read More Job Applicant Successfully Alleges Alienage Discrimination Based on Policy Targeting Legal Aliens Without Green CardsIn Cullen v. Verizon Communications, No. 14-CV-464S, 2014 WL 6627494 (W.D.N.Y. Nov. 21, 2014), the Western District of New York dismissed, under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6), plaintiff’s complaint alleging disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (as amended) (ADA) and the New York State Human Rights Law. Here are the facts,…
Read More Recent Court Decision is Instructive as to the Circumstances Under Which Alcoholism Constitutes a “Disability” Under the Anti-Discrimination Statutes