2013

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Below is the complaint filed on March 13, 2013 by Alexandra Marchuk (a Vandy Law grad) against law firm Faruqi & Faruqi – a self-proclaimed “recognized leader in protecting the rights of employees“- and its partner Juan E. Monteverde for sexual harassment. Among other things, plaintiff alleges: Mr. Monteverde intensified his improper actions on the…

Read More Briefs & Blow Jobs: Prominent Plaintiffs’ Law Firm And Partner Sued For Sexual Harassment
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Punctuality is important, and many employers rightly take the position that excessive tardiness can be grounds for discipline, up to and including termination.  However, a recent Second Circuit case holds that arriving on time is not necessarily an “essential function” of the job under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Specifically, McMillan v.…

Read More 2nd Circuit: Being On Time Is Not Necessarily an “Essential Function” Of Job
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In NY Statewide Coalition v. NYC DOHMH (NY Sup. Ct. NY Cty. Index 653584/12), the court enjoined the enforcement of NYC Health Code § 81.53 (which prohibits the sale by certain vendors of “sugary drinks” exceeding 16 fluid ounces). In addition to finding that the Rule violated the separation of powers doctrine, Judge Tingling found that…

Read More Viva La Soda! Manhattan Judge Milton Tingling Strikes Down Mayor Bloomberg’s “Soda Ban”
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Summa v. Hofstra (11-1743, Feb. 21, 2013):  The Second Circuit found that plaintiff student/football team manager Lauren E. Summa presented sufficient evidence to support her retaliation (but not her harassment) claims against the defendants.  Plaintiff claimed that she was harassed by several football players and then subjected to retaliation for complaining about it.  Among other things,…

Read More 2nd Circuit: Student/Coach May Continue Retaliation, But Not Harassment, Claims Against Hofstra University
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Gilchrist v. City of New York, decided on March 7, 2013, contains an important lesson for plaintiffs’ lawyers in personal injury cases:  wherever possible, make sure to specifically request that certain pieces of evidence be preserved.  Here, the defendants’ failure to preserve such specifically requested evidence resulted in sanctions for spoliation of evidence. In this…

Read More Defendants’ Spoliation of Evidence Results in Adverse Inference Charge and Denial of Summary Judgment Motion
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Winfield v. Trottier, 11-4404 (2nd Cir. March 6, 2013) (JACOBS, Pooler, Hall): Plaintiffs sued a Vermont state trooper under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging that he violated their Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights by reading an item of mail uncovered during a search of plaintiff’s car during a traffic stop. The Second Circuit held that,…

Read More Second Circuit: Police Officer Entitled to Qualified Immunity For Reading Stopped Driver’s Mail
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In a letter to three federal judges, including the Honorable John G. Koeltl of the Southern District of New York, NELA/NY members Herb Eisenberg and Julian Birnbaum explain why recent proposed changes to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure that would tend to limit discovery would for that reason be detrimental to employment discrimination plaintiffs.…

Read More Letter Highlights Evidentiary Difficulties Faced By Employment Discrimination Plaintiffs
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Revolutionary War, Part Deux? In a complaint captioned Bottoms v. World Class Learning Academy of New York et al filed on February 28, 2013 in NY state court by Sarah Bottoms against UK-based World Class Learning Academy of New York, plaintiff alleges breach of contract, as well as discrimination and retaliation under the NYS and…

Read More “Get Rid of the Americans”: Suit Against British School
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In a recent opinion (Desardouin v. City of Rochester, No. 12-187-cv (2nd Cir. Feb. 19, 2013)), the Second Circuit reversed a summary judgment for defendant and upheld plaintiff Jewanta Desardouin’s hostile work environment claim. It held that even though her case was not an “obvious” one of hostile work environment, plaintiff’s “allegations of repeated solicitation…

Read More Plaintiff’s Hostile Work Environment Claim Survives Summary Judgment Where Supervisor Said That Plaintiff’s Husband Was “Not Taking Care of Her in Bed”
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