NYS Human Rights Law

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In Vosburgh v. American Nat. Red Cross, 2014 WL 4826688 (N.D.N.Y. Sept. 29, 2014), the court denied defendant’s summary judgment motion regarding plaintiff’s retaliation claim (but granted it regarding plaintiff’s wage and individual liability claims). As to her retaliation claim, the court held: [T]o prevail at the pretext stage of the McDonnell–Douglas analysis, a plaintiff must show…

Read More Hostility to Employee’s Alleged “Disloyal” Conduct Supports Retaliation Claim
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Santiago v. Dept. of Education illustrates that in an employment discrimination case, the plaintiff must plausibly allege an “adverse employment action.” The quintessential “adverse employment action” is, of course, termination. However, other actions short of termination may qualify. Plaintiff – an itinerant attendance teacher – alleged disparate treatment and a hostile work environment under the…

Read More Employment Discrimination Lawsuit Dismissed; No “Adverse Action”
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Here is the complaint recently filed by Mets executive Leigh Castergine against Sterling Mets Front Office LLC and Chief Operating Officer Jeffrey Wilpon. Plaintiff alleges that she was discriminated against by Wilpon because she had a child without being married (a practice Wilpon was “morally opposed to”), and then fired for complaining about discrimination.

Read More Mets Executive Alleges She Was Fired For Out-of-Wedlock Pregnancy
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In Valleriani v. Route 390 Nissan (filed Sept. 2, 2014), the Western District of New York denied defendant’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s gender-based hostile work environment claim: [T]o constitute gender discrimination in the form of a hostile work environment, the conduct directed at Plaintiff had to be based on her gender. Here, the incidents…

Read More Content, Rather Than Motivation, for Sexually Offensive Language is Relevant in Hostile Work Environment Case, According to Court
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In Shafer v. The American University in Cairo, plaintiff – a tenure-track Assistant Professor – alleged that she was subjected to a hostile work environment, demoted, and discriminated against relative to tenure as a result of her identity as a white American Muslim woman, and then retaliated against for complaining about discrimination.  The court granted summary judgment to defendants…

Read More Retaliation, But Not Religious Discrimination, Claims Continue Against American University in Cairo
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According to a lawsuit filed earlier this year, the male executives at Archie Comics behaved more like Reggie Mantle than Archie Andrews. Plaintiffs – several female employees – allege that various male executives humiliated, harassed, bullied, and intimidated female employees because of their gender and their support of co-CEO Nancy Seiberkleit. They further allege that “Archie Comics is…

Read More Lawsuit Alleges Gender Discrimination, Hostile Work Environment, and Retaliation at Archie Comics
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One way to prove discrimination is by introducing evidence of negative comments pertaining to the plaintiff’s protected class or about others in the plaintiff’s protected class. But what if some, or all, of the derogatory comments are not directly perceived by the harassment victim? That is one of the issues addressed by the Southern District…

Read More Secondhand “Incendiary” Comments Regarding Sexual Orientation Sufficient to State Hostile Work Environment Claim
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In Lapaix v. City of New York (decided Aug. 12, 2014), the Southern District of New York held that plaintiff – a retired Marine Colonel – adequately pleaded various employment discrimination claims. Here’s plaintiff’s complaint. Initially the court held that plaintiff stated military status discrimination claims under the federal Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) and the New…

Read More Retired Marine States Military Status, Race, and National Origin Discrimination Claims
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The sudden and tragic suicide of Robin Williams has reinvigorated a national discussion about depression and related conditions. What you may not know is that depression sufferers have legal protections in the workplace, specifically if they are treated unfairly because of their medical condition. Various laws – including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990…

Read More Depression as a “Disability” Under the Anti-Discrimination Laws
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In Waters v. Town Sports Intl. Holdings, Inc., a Manhattan trial court held that plaintiff sufficiently alleged various claims arising from an incident in which he was essentially terrorized – he claims based on his sexual orientation – while patronizing a New York Sports Club. The facts, in part: On December 30, 2013, plaintiff, a…

Read More Gay Man States Public Accommodation (Sexual Orientation) Discrimination and Other Claims Against New York Sports Club
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