Statutory Interpretation

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In Savage v. Township of Neptune, 313 A.3d 65, 257 N.J. 204 (N.J. May 7, 2024), the New Jersey Supreme Court held that under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), the non-disparagement provision at issue was unenforceable against public policy. From the decision: In this appeal, we consider whether a “non-disparagement provision” in a…

Read More NJ Supreme Court Holds “Non-Disparagement” Provision in Employment Discrimination Agreement Was Unenforceable as Against Public Policy
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In Crawford v. David Ratner, No. 952052/2023, 2023 WL 8810507 (N.Y. Sup Ct, New York County Dec. 20, 2023), the court, inter alia, denied the defendant’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s claims – arising from a series of alleged sexual assaults, sexual harassment and retaliatory conduct between 2010 and 2011 by the defendant – under the…

Read More Adult Survivors Act (ASA) Revives NYC Human Rights Law Claims, in Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Arising From 2010-2011 Conduct, Court Rules
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In Famuyide v. Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. et al, 2023 WL 5651915, (D.Minn. August 31, 2023), the court, applying the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021 (EFAA), denied the defendant’s motion to compel arbitration. That statute provides, in pertinent part: Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, at the…

Read More Court Denies Chipotle’s Motion to Compel Arbitration of Sexual Harassment Claim; Dispute Arose After “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021”
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On March 3, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021, codified at 9 U.S.C. § 402 (EFAA). This law, in sum, invalidates any pre-dispute mandatory arbitration clause as it applies to plaintiffs alleging claims of or related to workplace sexual harassment. In a recent…

Read More Court Considers Temporal Applicability of the “Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021”
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In a recent decision, Thaler v. Vidal, 2022 WL 3130863 (Fed. Cir. Aug. 5, 2022), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that only a human being – and not, as asserted in this case, an artificial intelligence – may be an “inventor” within the meaning of the Patent Act (Title 35…

Read More Sorry, Robots: An “Inventor” on a Patent Application Must be a Human Being
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Today, in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, No. 17-1618 (June 15, 2020) (J. Gorsuch),[1]This case was decided together with Altitude Express, Inc. v. Zarda, No. 17-1623 (Second Circuit) and R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, Inc. v. EEOC, No. 18-107 (Sixth Circuit). the U.S. Supreme Court held that the prohibition of discrimination based on “sex”…

Read More U.S. Supreme Court Rules 6-3 That Title VII Prohibits Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Transgender Status
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In Babb v. Wilkie, 2020 WL 1668281 (U.S. April 6, 2020), the U.S. Supreme Court interpreted the federal-sector provision of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), 88 Stat. 74, 29 U.S.C. § 633a(a). That section provides, in relevant part: “All personnel actions affecting employees or applicants for employment who are at least…

Read More SCOTUS Interprets the ADEA’s Federal-Sector Provision
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In Artis v. District of Columbia, 2018 WL 491524 (U.S. Sup. Ct. Jan. 22, 2018), the U.S. Supreme Court interpreted a federal statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1367(d), which provides the timeframe for when state claims must be re-filed in state court after their dismissal from a federal action. In many cases, particularly employment discrimination cases,…

Read More SCOTUS Interprets Statute Relating to Timeframe For Refiling State Law Claims (Including For Employment Discrimination) When Federal Court Dismisses Them
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In Makinen v. City of New York, 2017 NY Slip Op 07208, 2017 WL 4621717 (N.Y. Ct. App. Oct. 17, 2017) (J. Fahey), the Court of Appeals of New York – the state’s highest court – addressed the following certified question: Do sections 8–102(16)(c) and 8–107(1)(a) of the New York City Administrative Code preclude a plaintiff…

Read More NY Highest Court: Discrimination Based on Perception of Untreated Alcoholism Not Actionable Under the NYC Human Rights Law
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In Kimmel v. State, No. 36, 2017 WL 1838940 (N.Y. May 9, 2017), the New York Court of Appeals (the state’s highest court) held that the state Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA), codified at CPLR Article 86, “permits the award of attorneys’ fees and costs to a prevailing plaintiff in an action against the State…

Read More NY Court of Appeals: Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) Permits Award of Attorney Fees to Prevailing Plaintiffs in Actions Against NY State Under the NYS Human Rights Law For Sex Discrimination in Employment By a State Agency
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