Hostile Work Environment

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In Moraetis v. Robert S. Evans et al (NY Sup. Ct. NY Cty. Index 152829/2015) (J. Bannon), a gender discrimination/hostile work environment case, the court declined (under CPLR 5519(c)) to stay the matter pending appeal of an earlier decision denying defendant’s motion to dismiss. Procedurally, the court noted that “[w]here, as here, there is no…

Read More Court Denies Stay Pending Appeal in Gender-Based Hostile Work Environment Case
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In Demir v. Sandoz Inc. and Fougera Pharmaceuticals (NY Sup. Ct. NY Cty., Index 150954/2015, Feb. 17, 2017), the court held that plaintiff – a Muslim woman of Turkish national origin – sufficiently alleged causes of action for discrimination and hostile work environment (based on her gender, national origin, and religion) under the New York State…

Read More Muslim/Turkish Woman Sufficiently Alleges Gender, National Origin, and Religious Discrimination Against Sandoz
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The Southern District of New York’s recent decision in McCray v. Project Renewal, Inc., 15-cv-8494, 2017 WL 715010 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 22, 2017) (Judge Caproni) serves as another reminder of the procedural hurdles that must be overcome in order to assert an employment discrimination claim in federal court. Plaintiff, proceeding pro se, sued his former employer, Defendant Project Renewal,…

Read More Court Dismisses ADA Disability Discrimination Claim as Unexhausted, Title VII Race Discrimination Claim as Insufficiently Pled
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It is an unfortunate reality that many employment discrimination cases are dismissed. These cases are often difficult to prove, and success requires navigating a path riddled with hurdles, ranging from statutes of limitation, to proper pleading, to dismissal on summary judgment following the completion of discovery. A recent example is Edwards v. N.Y. State Office of…

Read More Court Dismisses Born Again Christian’s Employment Discrimination, Hostile Work Environment, and Retaliation Claims
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In Morshed v. St. Barnabas Hosp., No. 16 CIV. 2862 (LGS), 2017 WL 543236 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 10, 2017), the court overruled defendants’ claims that ten documents were “privileged under the self-critical analysis privilege, peer review privilege and quality assurance privileges.”[1]Specifically, defendants asserted the following as grounds for their assertion of privilege: Rule 501 of the…

Read More Court Overrules Defendants’ Claims of Privilege in Sexual Harassment/Hostile Work Environment Case
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In Lorber v. Jacob Lew, No. 15-cv-9995, 2017 WL 633446 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 15, 2017) (J. Kimba M. Wood), the court dismissed (for failure to state a claim under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6)) plaintiff’s gender-based hostile work environment claim, but stayed its decision on defendant’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s Title VII sexual orientation discrimination claim (which…

Read More SDNY Dismisses Sex-Based Hostile Work Environment Claim; Stays Ruling on Title VII Sexual Orientation Discrimination (Stereotyping) Claim Pending Second Circuit Rulings
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In Arifi v. Cent. Moving & Storage Co., No. 159334/12, 2017 WL 628321 (N.Y. App. Div. 1st Dept. Feb. 16, 2017), the court affirmed the lower court’s order granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s age discrimination claims. From the decision: In moving for summary judgment dismissing plaintiff’s claims for age-based employment discrimination under…

Read More Age Discrimination Claims Properly Dismissed; Suspicion of Theft Was a Legitimate, Nondiscriminatory, Non-Pretextual Reason for Termination
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In Prophete-Camille v. Stericycle, Inc., No. 14-CV-7268(JS)(AKT), 2017 WL 570769 (E.D.N.Y. Feb. 13, 2017), the court denied defendant’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s sexual harassment/hostile work environment claim. With respect to the issue of whether the workplace was sufficiently “hostile”, the court explained: The Court finds that Plaintiff has raised issues of fact on her…

Read More Sexual Harassment (Hostile Work Environment) Claim Survives Summary Judgment; Evidence Included Sexual Comments and References to Sexual Acts, Sexual Relationship
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Happy Valentine’s Day! While this holiday of (ahem) love may bring back fond memories of grade-school card and candy swapping, it’s important to remember that bringing romance into the workplace – even (or maybe especially) on Valentine’s Day – presents risks, most notably of a sexual harassment/hostile work environment lawsuit. Consider, for example, the case of Pugni…

Read More Valentine’s Day and the Workplace
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