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Discrimination

  • September 11, 2025

    Electronics Co., EEOC Resolve Disability Bias Suit

    An electronics manufacturer has agreed to pay $78,000 to end a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit alleging it refused to accommodate an engineering analyst who asked to work from home after the pandemic when her osteoarthritis worsened, according to an Alabama federal court filing.

  • September 10, 2025

    En Banc 11th Circ. Ruling Hints At Broad Reach For Skrmetti

    The Eleventh Circuit invoking a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that backed a Tennessee ban on gender-affirming care for minors to rule against a transgender Georgia sheriff's deputy who challenged her health plan's coverage exclusions invites lower courts to import the justices' rationale into workplace discrimination cases, experts say.  

  • September 10, 2025

    6th Circ. Splits In Racial Bias Suit Over Hearsay Evidence

    A divided Sixth Circuit panel upheld an elevator manufacturer's defeat of a former employee's retaliation suit Wednesday, saying a human resources representative's secondhand statement about the reason for the employee's termination was correctly kept out of the case.

  • September 10, 2025

    State AGs Back Trans Worker In Liberty U.'s 4th Circ. Appeal

    A group of 19 states and Washington, D.C., urged the Fourth Circuit to back a trial court's decision to keep a former Liberty University employee's transgender bias case in court, arguing the religious university's interpretation of the First Amendment would decimate anti-discrimination efforts.

  • September 10, 2025

    Emirates Wants To Land Laid-Off Workers' Class Cert. Bid

    A group of former Emirates employees should not receive class certification in their suit claiming the airline discriminated against American employees during its 2020 layoffs that they said were made without proper notice, the airline told a New York federal court.

  • September 10, 2025

    Nursing Home Illegally Fired Pregnant Worker, EEOC Says

    A nursing facility and its operator violated the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act when they effectively fired an employee who requested light duty to accommodate her pregnancy, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission claimed in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in Maryland federal court.

  • September 10, 2025

    2nd Circ. Won't Revive Healthcare Workers' Vax Bias Suit

    The Second Circuit backed Northwell Health's win over a lawsuit claiming it unlawfully terminated 30 employees who requested religious exemptions from the healthcare system's COVID-19 vaccination policy, ruling Wednesday that granting those requests would have conflicted with New York state law.

  • September 10, 2025

    4th Circ. Backs Dismissal Of Black VCU Prof's Retaliation Suit

    A split Fourth Circuit panel refused Wednesday to revive a Black professor's suit claiming Virginia Commonwealth University pulled her off a supplemental director role because she made race bias complaints, despite a dissent from one judge who said the suit should go to a jury.

  • September 10, 2025

    VA, Ex-Worker End Bias Suit Over FMLA Issues

    A Black former employee of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has agreed to end her suit alleging she was charged with not reporting to work despite having approved intermittent medical leave and was discriminated against because of her race and sex, a Missouri federal court said Wednesday.

  • September 10, 2025

    Terminal Co. Inks $20K Deal In EEOC Disability Bias Suit

    A marine terminal operator has agreed to pay $20,000 to resolve a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission suit claiming it refused to return a truck driver with a heart condition to his job after he received medical clearance, the EEOC said Wednesday.

  • September 09, 2025

    7th Circ. Doubts Proof In Chicago Cop's COVID-19 Death Case

    A Seventh Circuit panel seemed unconvinced Tuesday that a Chicago police officer's widow has enough evidence to go to trial on claims that he contracted COVID-19 and died days later because his superiors never responded to his work accommodation request.

  • September 09, 2025

    5th Circ. Backs Texas University In Medical Leave Suit

    The Fifth Circuit upheld Texas Christian University's win over a former employee's lawsuit claiming she was fired for taking medical leave, saying she failed to show she was eligible for federally protected time off to take care of her mental health.

  • September 09, 2025

    10th Circ. Seems Unsure About Reviving Rehab Worker's Suit

    An occupational therapist tried to persuade a Tenth Circuit panel Tuesday to revive her suit alleging she was illegally punished after complaining about sexual harassment, with several judges questioning whether the circumstances surrounding her resignation amount to the sort of negative employment decision needed to keep her case alive.

  • September 09, 2025

    UPS, Teamsters Look To Ax Ex-Worker's Return-To-Work Suit

    A Tennessee federal judge should toss an ex-UPS employee's claims that the company and a Teamsters local thwarted his attempt to return to work after an on-the-job injury, the company and union argued, saying they made every effort to get him back to work, but he wouldn't cooperate.

  • September 09, 2025

    8th Circ. Won't Revive Black Workers' Bias Suit Against Nucor

    The Eighth Circuit declined Tuesday to reinstate a race bias suit from two Black former workers who claimed steel manufacturer Nucor unfairly disciplined them for complaining that they faced racist harassment, saying their hostile work environment and retaliation claims were rightly tossed.

  • September 09, 2025

    Fed Circ. Won't Revive Ex-DOI Worker's Military Bias Case

    The Federal Circuit on Tuesday refused to revive a former U.S. Department of the Interior employee's allegations that he was denied promotions because he's an Air Force veteran, ruling the claims were precluded by a 2008 settlement agreement and 2022 appeals court decision.

  • September 09, 2025

    Full 11th Circ. Backs Health Plan's Gender Care Exclusions

    The Eleventh Circuit struck down a win Tuesday for a transgender sheriff's deputy who sued a Georgia county health plan after it refused to pay for gender-affirming surgery, saying the challenged coverage exclusion did not violate federal anti-discrimination law.  

  • September 09, 2025

    BDO Seeks To Ditch Bulk Of Ex-Partner's $75M Bias Suit

    Accounting firm BDO sought to fend off most of the claims in a $75 million discrimination suit brought by a former tax partner who took leave when her son had a stroke, telling a New York federal court she was not an employee protected by the laws she says the firm violated.

  • September 09, 2025

    Lambda Legal Attorney Indicted Over Judge Shopping Probe

    An attorney with LGBTQ rights nonprofit Lambda Legal has been charged in Alabama federal court in connection with an alleged judge-shopping scandal in Alabama, with prosecutors claiming he lied to a panel of federal judges investigating the episode.

  • September 09, 2025

    Wash. Pay Transparency Ruling Leaves Many Open Questions

    The Washington Supreme Court's narrow opinion on who can sue as a job applicant under the state's pay transparency law leaves much unsettled, particularly about how class actions should be managed and whether the law's penalties are unconstitutional, attorneys told ݮƵ.

  • September 09, 2025

    Drink Co. Illegally Axed Worker With MS, EEOC Says

    A North Carolina soft drink maker discriminated against a probationary worker with multiple sclerosis when it refused to permanently hire her after she passed a physical agility test and provided a doctor's note clearing her to work, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said.

  • September 09, 2025

    NASA Shuts Down Black Ex-Engineer's Bias Suit

    A Texas federal judge tossed a race and age bias suit from a Black ex-NASA engineer who claimed he was placed on an unrealistic performance improvement plan and then pushed into retirement, saying he hadn't shown prejudice drove the agency's actions.

  • September 08, 2025

    3rd Circ. Revives Ex-Lecturer's Suit Over Alt-Right Views

    The Third Circuit on Monday found school disruptions at the New Jersey Institute of Technology caused by a philosophy lecturer's comments don't outweigh his free speech rights, reversing the school's summary judgment win in the professor's lawsuit alleging NJIT violated his constitutional rights by refusing to renew his contract after his off-campus, alt-right comments drew national attention.

  • September 08, 2025

    Walgreens Fired Pharmacy Heads After Union Vote, Suits Say

    Two ex-pharmacy managers have accused Walgreens of firing them for refusing to spy on their employees amid a campaign to unionize at a store in southwest Washington state, according to two new lawsuits launched in federal court in the Evergreen State.

  • September 08, 2025

    Lowe's Workers Drop Suit Claiming Unlawful Insurance Fees

    Ex-Lowe's employees have dropped a proposed class action alleging the home improvement retailer violated federal law by overcharging tobacco-using employees for health insurance, according to a notice filed in North Carolina federal court.

Expert Analysis

  • Water Cooler Talk: 'Late Night' Shows DEI Is More Than Optics

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    Amid the shifting legal landscape for corporate diversity, equity and inclusion programs, Troutman's Tracey Diamond and Emily Schifter chat with their firm's DEI committee chair, Nicole Edmonds, about how the 2019 film "Late Night" reflects the challenges and rewards of fostering meaningful inclusion.

  • 9 Considerations For Orgs Using AI Meeting Assistants

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    When deciding to use artificial intelligence meeting assistants, organizations must create and implement a written corporate policy that establishes the do's and don'ts for these assistants, taking into account individualized business operations, industry standards and legal and regulatory requirements, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • What's At Stake In High Court Transgender Care Suit

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    The outcome of U.S. v. Skrmetti will have critical implications for the rights of transgender youth and their access to gender-affirming care, and will likely affect other areas of law and policy involving transgender individuals, including education, employment, healthcare and civil rights, say attorneys at ArentFox Schiff.

  • Determining What 'I Don't Feel Safe' Means In The Workplace

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    When an employee tells an employer "I don't feel safe," the phrase can have different meanings, so employment lawyers must adequately investigate to identify which meaning applies — and a cursory review and dismissal of the situation may not be a sufficient defense in case of future legal proceedings, says Karen Elliott at FordHarrison.

  • How EEOC Enforcement Priorities May Change Under Trump

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    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has already been rocked by the Trump administration's dramatic changes in personnel and policy, which calls into question how the agency may shift its direction from the priorities set forth in its five-year strategic enforcement plan in 2023, say attorneys at Seyfarth.

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Back To Basics After Admin Change

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    Having an up-to-date employee handbook is more critical now than ever, given the recent change in administration, and employers should understand their benefits and risks, including how they can limit employers’ liability and help retain employers’ rights, say Kasey Cappellano and Meaghan Gandy at Kutak Rock.

  • What Axed Title IX Gender Identity Rule Means For Higher Ed

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    Following a Kentucky federal court's recent decision in State of Tennessee v. Cardona to strike down a Biden-era rule that expanded the definition of Title IX to prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity, institutions of higher education should prepare to reimplement policies that comply with the reinstated 2020 rule, say attorneys at Venable.

  • A Path Forward For Cos. Amid Trump's Anti-DEIA Efforts

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    Given the Trump administration’s recent efforts targeting corporate diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility programs — including threatening possible criminal prosecution — companies should carefully tailor their DEIA initiatives to comply with both the letter and the spirit of antidiscrimination law, say attorneys at Pillsbury.

  • Workforce Data Collection Considerations After DEI Order

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    Following President Donald Trump's executive order targeting diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, employers should balance the benefits of collecting demographic data with the risk of violating the order’s prohibition on "illegal DEI," say Lynn Clements at Berkshire Associates, David Cohen at DCI Consulting and Victoria Lipnic at Resolution Economics.

  • How DOGE's Severance Plan May Affect Federal Employees

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    President Donald Trump's administration, working through the Department of Government Efficiency, recently offered a severance package to nearly all of the roughly 2 million federal employees, but unanswered questions about the offer, coupled with several added protections for government workers, led to fewer accepted offers than expected, says Aaron Peskin at Kang Haggerty.

  • Rethinking 'No Comment' For Clients Facing Public Crises

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    “No comment” is no longer a cost-free or even a viable public communications strategy for companies in crisis, and counsel must tailor their guidance based on a variety of competing factors to help clients emerge successfully, says Robert Bowers at Moore & Van Allen.

  • 10 Issues To Watch In Aerospace And Defense Contracting

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    This year, in addition to evergreen developments driven by national security priorities, disruptive new technologies and competition with rival powers, federal contractors will see significant disruptions driven by the new administration’s efforts to reduce government spending, regulation and the size of the federal workforce, say attorneys at Thompson Hine.

  • Undoing An American Ideal Of Fairness

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    President Donald Trump’s orders attacking birthright citizenship, civil rights education, and diversity, equity and inclusion programs threaten hard-won constitutional civil rights protections and decades of efforts to undo bias in the law — undermining what Chief Justice Earl Warren called "our American ideal of fairness," says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.