Discrimination

  • February 02, 2026

    8th Circ. Rejects Minn. Health Worker's COVID-19 Suit

    The Eighth Circuit ruled Monday that the Minnesota Department of Human Services didn't illegally fail to exempt a Catholic employee from mandatory weekly COVID-19 testing for unvaccinated individuals, saying the pandemic-era requirement was lawful.

  • February 02, 2026

    6th Circ. Says High Court Ruling Buoys Bias Suit Against GM

    The Sixth Circuit reinstated a male General Motors worker's sex bias suit claiming he got harsher discipline than a female colleague, ruling Monday that his case needs a second look after the U.S. Supreme Court clarified the standards for discrimination cases brought by workers in majority groups.

  • February 02, 2026

    Curaleaf Can't Ditch All Ill. Whistleblower Act Claims

    An Illinois magistrate judge on Monday mostly denied a bid from Curaleaf Inc. to throw out a former regional director's Illinois Whistleblower Act claims, saying the complaint is sufficient to allege that he was retaliated against for reporting compliance violations to the state government.

  • February 02, 2026

    EEOC Calls School Board's Bias Probe Challenge Premature

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission urged a New Mexico federal judge to toss a school board's challenge to an agency investigation into alleged hiring discrimination against Native Americans, arguing the case is procedurally out of line.

  • February 02, 2026

    Philly Art Museum Wins Bid To Arbitrate CEO's Firing Suit

    Former Philadelphia Museum of Art CEO Alexandra "Sasha" Suda's lawsuit against the museum alleging that a "corrupt faction" in its leadership forced her out of her position must be handled in arbitration, a city judge has ruled, citing a contract provision.

  • February 02, 2026

    Worker Fired After Bias Claim Should Get $5M, Jury Says

    A Utah federal jury awarded a former human resources worker $5 million in her retaliation suit claiming a hospice provider fired her as punishment for lodging an age and gender bias charge with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

  • February 02, 2026

    Wollmuth Maher Picks Up Attys From Paul Hastings, SDNY

    Wollmuth Maher & Deutsch LLP has added the longtime leader of Paul Hastings LLP's New York employment law department and has bolstered its white collar bench by bringing in a veteran former assistant U.S. attorney.

  • January 30, 2026

    Back Pay Over Vax Mandate Is Equitable Relief, Justices Hear

    A U.S. Air Force reservist told the U.S. Supreme Court this week that equitable relief under a religious freedom law should extend to his back pay claim related to his refusal to follow its COVID-19 vaccine mandate, arguing he's only seeking "status-restoring relief."

  • January 30, 2026

    7th Circ. Grills Trump Admin Atty Over Definition Of Illegal DEI

    Seventh Circuit judges on Friday pushed an attorney for the Trump administration to define what kind of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives it deems illegal in requiring grant recipients to certify they don't promote DEI programs that violate anti-discrimination law, with one judge saying the unanswered question has caused "frustration" in litigation over the requirement.

  • January 30, 2026

    3 Argument Sessions Bias Attys Should Watch In February

    The Ninth Circuit will analyze the scope of a law barring mandatory arbitration in sexual harassment disputes, while the Seventh Circuit will consider a U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission disability bias case against Walmart before tackling a religious discrimination suit over pharmaceutical giant Lilly's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Here, Law360 looks at three oral arguments that discrimination attorneys should keep tabs on in February.

  • January 30, 2026

    Attys Rip Judge-Shopping Sanctions As Bid To 'Rewrite' Rules

    Two Alabama attorneys who were sanctioned for allegedly judge shopping in a civil rights case urged the Eleventh Circuit to toss the sanctions Friday, arguing the judges accusing them were seeking to "rewrite" the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

  • January 30, 2026

    1st Circ. Revives Ex-Hasbro Workers' Religious Vax Bias Suit

    Two former Hasbro employees who sought religious exemptions from the company's COVID-19 vaccination policy plausibly alleged they were disciplined because of their accommodation requests, the First Circuit ruled, reviving the workers' retaliation and discrimination suit.

  • January 30, 2026

    FTC Warns 42 Law Firms Of DEI 'Anticompetitive Collusion'

    The Federal Trade Commission announced Friday that it has sent warning letters to 42 major law firms for their purported participation in an outside diversity, equity and inclusion program, alleging their participation could constitute anticompetitive collusion.

  • January 30, 2026

    Calif. Forecast: 9th Circ. Hears Netflix Harassment Args

    In the coming week, attorneys should keep an eye out for Ninth Circuit oral arguments regarding whether the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act prevents Netflix from seeking to send sexual harassment claims to arbitration. Here's a look at that case and other labor and employment matters coming up in California.

  • January 30, 2026

    Building Co. Strikes Deal In EEOC Age, Disability Bias Suit

    A building supply company agreed to a $26,000 deal with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to end a suit alleging the business fired a 67-year-old worker out of age and disability discrimination after claiming he arrived to work with a limp, the agency said.

  • January 30, 2026

    UPS Worker's Supervisor Status Dooms Teamsters Bias Suit

    An Indiana federal judge tossed a UPS manager's suit claiming a Teamsters local allowed its members to harass him with baseless complaints that he was a racist, ruling he couldn't sue under Title VII because, as a supervisor, he wasn't represented by the union.

  • January 30, 2026

    AstraZeneca Beats FMLA Suit After Ex-Worker Went Silent

    AstraZeneca won't have to face a former employee's lawsuit alleging the pharmaceutical giant fired him for taking medical leave to address his gastrointestinal illness, a Connecticut federal judge ruled, saying he failed to respond to discovery and motions and ignored court orders.

  • January 30, 2026

    NY Forecast: 2nd. Circ. Hears Fired Police Officer's Bias Suit

    This week, the Second Circuit will consider reviving a former Eastchester, New York, police officer's suit claiming he was suspended and later fired because of his national origin.

  • January 29, 2026

    3 Things To Watch As EEOC Consolidates Litigation Authority

    The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's leaders recently expanded their authority to approve or scuttle new lawsuits, a move that will shift enforcement priorities and reflects sentiments that had been brewing at the agency for years, experts say. Here are three things to know about the power shift at the EEOC.

  • January 29, 2026

    6th Circ. Tosses Black Flight Attendant's Race Bias Suit

    The Sixth Circuit declined Thursday to reinstate a Black Delta flight attendant's suit claiming she was disciplined out of racial bias following a verbal altercation with a colleague, ruling the airline acted fairly based on evidence that the flight attendant made an alleged threat during the incident.

  • January 29, 2026

    Ex-Arby's Employee Sues Over Gender Identity Harassment

    Arby's has been sued in Illinois federal court by a nonbinary ex-employee who claims they suffered pervasive discrimination and ridicule from their supervisor over their gender identity, and that reports of the manager's sexual harassment went unaddressed.

  • January 29, 2026

    NJ Justices Say Title IX Preempts Rutgers Union Contract

    A grievance procedure in a local union's collective negotiation agreement with Rutgers University is preempted by Title IX, the New Jersey Supreme Court said Thursday, reversing a lower court's decision that forced the university into post-termination arbitration over a custodian fired for sexual harassment.

  • January 29, 2026

    Nurse Fired In Pandemic-Era RIF Can't Reinstate Age Bias Suit

    The Sixth Circuit backed the dismissal of an age bias suit from a nurse who claimed a medical center used a COVID-19-related reduction in force as an excuse to fire her, ruling a supervisor calling one of her colleagues a "young star" wasn't linked to her termination.

  • January 29, 2026

    Full 1st Circ. To Review Cop's Suspension For Facebook Post

    The full First Circuit has agreed to review a Massachusetts police officer's suspension for making disparaging comments about George Floyd on a personal Facebook page, setting aside an opinion in the police department's favor and teeing up an appeal focused on the speech rights of government employees.

  • January 28, 2026

    1st Circ. Says Ex-Cop Proves No Bias In Retaliation Suit

    The First Circuit backed the dismissal of an ex-Boston cop's retaliation suit claiming the department shared her disciplinary records with prospective employers because of her accusations that police leaders buried her claims of rape by a fellow officer, ruling she hadn't provided any evidence of bias.

Expert Analysis

  • How Ending OFCCP Will Affect Affirmative Action Obligations

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    As President Donald Trump's administration plans to eliminate the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, which enforces federal contractor antidiscrimination compliance and affirmative action program obligations, contractors should consider the best compliance approaches available to them, especially given the False Claims Act implications, say attorneys at Ogletree.

  • Employer Best Practices For Navigating Worker Separations

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    As job cuts hit several major industries, employers should take steps to minimize their exposure to discrimination claims, information leaks and enforcement challenges, such as maintaining sound documentation, strategic planning and legal coordination, says Mark Romance at Day Pitney.

  • Employer Tips For Responding To ICE In The Workplace

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    Increased immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump's administration has left employers struggling to balance their compliance obligations with their desire to provide a safe workplace, so creating a thorough response plan and training for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's presence at the workplace is crucial, say attorneys at Hanson Bridgett.

  • Handbook Hot Topics: Shifting Worker Accommodation Rules

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    Since President Donald Trump took office, many changes have directly affected how employers must address accommodation requests, particularly those concerning pregnancy-related medical conditions and religious beliefs, underscoring the importance of regularly reviewing and updating accommodation policies and procedures, say attorneys at Kutak Rock.

  • Shifting DEI Expectations Put Banks In Legal Crosshairs

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    The Trump administration's rollbacks on DEI-friendly policies create something of a regulatory catch-22 for banks, wherein strict compliance would contradict established statutory and administrative mandates regarding access to credit for disadvantaged communities, say attorneys at Husch Blackwell.

  • Compliance Tips After Court Axes EEOC's Trans Rights Take

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    A Texas federal court's recent decision struck portions of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's 2024 guidance pertaining to sexual orientation and gender identity under Title VII, barring their use nationwide and leaving employers unsure about how to proceed in their compliance efforts, say attorneys at Dorsey & Whitney.

  • 5 Insurance Claims That Could Emerge After NCAA Settlement

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    Following the recent NCAA class action settlement that will allow revenue sharing with college athletes, there may be potential management liability for universities, their executive leadership and boards that could expose insurers to tax, regulatory, breach of contract and other claims, says Sarah Abrams at Baleen Specialty.

  • 8th Circ. Ruling Highlights Complicated Remote Work Analysis

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    The Eighth Circuit’s recent opinion in Kuklenski v. Medtronic USA demonstrates that the applicability of employment laws to remote workers is often a fact-driven analysis, highlighting several parameters to consider when evaluating what state and local laws may apply to employees who work remotely, say attorneys at Vedder Price.

  • Philly Law Initiates New Era Of Worker Protections

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    A new worker protection law in Philadelphia includes, among other measures, a private right of action and recordkeeping requirements that may amount to a lower evidentiary standard, introducing a new level of accountability and additional noncompliance risks for employers, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Justices' Ruling Lowers Bar For Reverse Discrimination Suits

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's unanimous opinion in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, lowering the evidentiary burden for plaintiffs bringing so-called reverse discrimination claims, may lead to more claims brought by majority group employees — and open the door to legal challenges to employer diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, say attorneys at Ice Miller.

  • 4 Midyear Employer Actions To Reinforce Compliance

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    The legal and political landscape surrounding what the government describes as unlawful diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives has become increasingly complex over the past six months, and the midyear juncture presents a strategic opportunity to reinforce commitments to legal integrity, workplace equity and long-term operational resilience, say attorneys at Krevolin & Horst.

  • Proposed State AI Rule Ban Could Alter Employer Compliance

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    A proposal in the congressional budget bill that would ban state and local enforcement of laws and regulations governing artificial intelligence may offer near-term clarity by freezing conflicting rules, but long-term planning would remain difficult for employers seeking safe, lawful AI deployment strategies, say attorneys at Fisher Phillips.

  • What Employers Can Learn From 'Your Friends & Neighbors'

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    The new drama series "Your Friends and Neighbors," follows a hedge fund firm manager who is terminated after an alleged affair with an employee in another department, and his employment struggles can teach us a few lessons about workplace policies, for cause termination and nonsolicitation clauses, says Anita Levian at Levian Law.