Work place harassment is still with us. And, courts still struggle with the term “severe or pervasive.” To rise to the level of work place harassment, conduct must be “severe or pervasive.” In Sanders v. Christus Santa Rosa PASC, 995 F.Supp. 2d 626 (W.D. Tex. 2014), the court looked at the totality of the
Fifth Circuit Reverses Western District for Making Credibility Determinations
In Burton v. Freescale Semiconductor Inc. and Manpower of Texas, LP, No. 14-50944 (5th Cir. 8/10/2015), the Fifth Circuit overruled the district court’s summary judgment. The court addressed a frequent issue, who is responsible for the termination of temporary employees? But, in so doing, the higher court also addressed a more frequent issue, how
Fifth Circuit Still does not Credit Plaintiff’s Testimony
The U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision Tolan v. Cotton, 572 US __, 134 S.Ct. 1861, 188 L.Ed.2d 895 a year ago. But, many courts still do not appreciate its holding. I wrote about the decision in Tolan v. Cotton here. The decision in Tolan essentially fusses at lower courts for not reviewing
Fifth Circuit Clears up “Mess” Regarding Stray Remarks
There are some theories of law that some courts and most defense lawyers rely on to undermine otherwise good discrimination cases. One of those theories is the “stray remarks” doctrine. In general, the stray remarks doctrine holds that some remarks by management are so remote from the adverse personnel action that they are not relevant.
Fifth Circuit Disregards Role of Jury
The Fifth Circuit has apparently decided that an employer will get a free pass when a supervisor makes one and only one racist comment. The supervisor was a co-worker of Courtney Satterwhite when he made the comment. Harry Singh, according to Mr. Satterwhite, uttered “Heil Hitler” during a conversation, at which a Jewish worker was
Fifth Circuit Clears Up Disability Discrimination Caselaw
In a recent decision, the Fifth Circuit cleared up some confusion regarding how to show disability discrimination. In EEOC v. LHC Group, Inc., No. 13-60703 (5th Cir. 12/11/2014), the court noted that Fifth Circuit jurisprudence had three different versions of a prima facie case for showing disability discrimination. All three versions required the plaintiff
Judge Reverses Sanctions Request in Discrimination Case
Yes, in federal court, either party can be sanctioned for its conduct during a lawsuit. Sanctionable conduct must be pretty egregious. National law firm, Littler Mendelson requested sanctions against a plaintiff who lost a summary judgment motion. Elaine Barley had sued Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. Ms. Barley alleged that Fox did not accommodate
Court Finds Factual Issues Regarding Accommodations
The ADA Amendments Act was passed in 2009. Since then, courts have addressed more fundamental questions about disability claims, such as what are the essential functions of a job and how can they be accommodated? On one such case, Perez v. Sprint/United Management Co., 2013 WL 6970898, No. 12-CV-3161 (N.D. Ga 12/19/2013), the court
Discrimination Cases Present Many Obstacles
Courtesy of creationc
Employment cases are exceedingly difficult, with numerous deadlines and traps for the unwary. We see some of these traps in the case of Prewitt v. Continental Automotive, No. 12-CV-582 (W.D. Tex. 8/28/2014). In this case, Larry Prewitt alleged that he had been terminated due to several reasons: race discrimination
Description as a “Liability” Could Constitute Direct Evidence
Alan Demyanovich worked for 20 years for Cadon Plating & Coating, which applies coatings in the automobile industry. Mr. Demyanovich developed heart problems in 1999, but returned to work and worked another ten years. In 2009, his heart condition worsened. He took substantial time off. In February, 2010, he again asked for FMLA leave. His