I previously wrote about the first decision in Hamilton v. Dallas County here. That decision held that forcing female detention officers to work on weekends was not discrimination based on sex. The Fifth Circuit panel noted rightly that prior caselaw required an “ultimate employment action” to constitute discrimination. Prior caselaw defined ultimate employment action as
In Spears v. Louisiana College, No. 20-30522, 2023 WL 2810057 (5th Cir. 4/6/2023), the appellate court addressed the situation in which an employee’s duties are are assigned to various employees. Some courts refer to this practice as “fractioning.” Carolyn Spears taught at Louisiana College for many years. She contracted cancer in 2012 and again
Well, the four whistleblowers who thought they had settled their claims with Ken Paxton perhaps did not. The four plaintiffs reacted to a statement from AG Ken Paxton’s office that if the state legislature does not authorize payment of the $3.3 million then they can try again next session – in two years. I previously
In yet another marathon hearing in the New York AG civil lawsuit, Judge Engoron gave Donald Trump a second chance to file an Answer that reflects reality. I talked about his Answer here in which he contradicted previous testimony in other lawsuits.
The judge denied the New York Attorney General’s request for sanctions and ordered
So, Justice Alito’s leaked draft opinion suggests Roe v Wade will be overturned. What does that possibility suggest for other rights? Justice Alito wrote in the draft opinion that the 14th Amendment did not specifically name abortion and otherwise does not protect a right to abortion. The draft opinion concerns the case of Dobbs v.
Increasingly popular during the pandemic are apps known as “bossware” and “tattle ware.” These software programs allow supervisors to track the work performed by work-from-home employees. These apps can monitor websites visited, log key strokes, take screenshots and even record video and audio. But, do such apps violate an employee’s privacy? Some states, such as
I previously talked about Alex Jones missing his first deposition date here.The Judge expressed deep skepticism about his absence that first day. Now, he has missed a second day set for his deposition. This is just a crazy litigation tactic. Unless Mr. Jones is in the hospital, he really needs to attend his own
Attorney General Ken Paxton asked his followers to harass Court of Criminal Appeals judges regarding a prior decision. That decision held that the AG cannot prosecute election fraud cases without permission from the local District Attorney. I previously wrote about AG Paxton’s call to arms here. It was an extraordinary call from any elected
The decision in Burlington Industries, Inc. v. Ellerth, 524 U.S. 742, 118 S.Ct. 2257, 141 L.ed.2d 633 (1998), set up a framework for employers to avoid liability. An employer can avoid liability for harassment of an employee if the employer has a robust system in place for reporting on-the-job harassment. Once such a reporting
Proving discrimination is never easy. Discrimination requires proof of intent. The plaintiff must prove or show what some manager was thinking. In Thompson v. Zinke, 795 Fed. Appdx. 294 (5th Cir. 2/27/2020), the plaintiff alleged he was discriminated against when he was passed over for promotion. Mr. Thompson noted that a white applicant with