Judge: Cathy Seibel

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In Estevez et al v. Berkeley College et al, 2022 WL 17177971 (S.D.N.Y. Nov. 23, 2022), the court denied defendant’s motion for Rule 11 sanctions, but chastised plaintiff’s counsel for what it perceived as an attempt to mislead the court. Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11 provides, in part, that an attorney presenting a pleading,…

Read More Court Admonishes Lawyer for Perceived Misrepresentations in Connection With Retaliation Claim
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In Talbott-Serrano v. Iona College et al, No. 21-CV-1055 (CS), 2022 WL 3718346 (S.D.N.Y. August 29, 2022), the court granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s disability-based hostile work environment claim asserted under the Americans with Disabilities Act. This case illustrates the subtle, yet crucial, distinction between a work environment that may “hostile” in…

Read More Disability-Based Hostile Work Environment Claim Dismissed; “Discourteous” and “Unpleasant” Conduct Held Insufficient
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In Estevez, Mancini, and Mekuli v. Berkeley College et al, No. 18-CV-10350 (CS), 2022 WL 1963659 (S.D.N.Y. June 6, 2022), an employment discrimination case, the court considered defendants’ motion for attorney fees following the court’s prior summary judgment dismissal of plaintiff’s claims. Many of the anti-discrimination laws – including Title VII of the Civil Rights…

Read More Court Finds That “Thin” Retaliation Claims Were Not “Frivolous” so as to Warrant an Award of Attorney Fees to Defendants; Cautions Plaintiffs’ Counsel
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In Benedith v. White Plains Hospital, 2021 WL 4555192 (S.D.N.Y. Oct. 4, 2021), the court dismissed plaintiff’s complaint, which asserted claims of race, color, and national origin discrimination (in the form of a failure to hire him as a physician). The court explained: At the pleading stage in an employment discrimination action, a plaintiff must…

Read More Failure-to-Hire Discrimination Claim Dismissed; Alleged “Contradiction” on Website Insufficient
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A recent decision, Estevez v. Berkeley College et al, 18-cv-10350, 2021 WL 3115452 (S.D.N.Y. July 19, 2021), once again discusses when alleged gender-based conduct crosses the line and becomes an actionable “hostile work environment.” As the court’s detailed decision addresses a number of additional issues (including whether the alleged conduct was “because of” plaintiffs’ sex),…

Read More Hostile Work Environment Claim Dismissed; Comments About Appearance Were Not “Severe or Pervasive”
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In Taylor v. The Children’s Village et al, 2021 WL 1581568 (SDNY April 21, 2021), the court, inter alia, dismissed plaintiff’s discrimination claim, asserted under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, based on her status as a crime victim. This decision illustrates Title VII’s relatively narrow scope: Plaintiff suggests throughout the amended…

Read More Title VII Discrimination Claim, Based on Status as Crime Victim, Dismissed
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In Lawrence v. Chemprene, Inc. et al, 18-CV-2537, 2019 WL 5449844 (SDNY Oct. 24, 2019), the court, inter alia, dismissed plaintiff’s race-based hostile work environment claim. While plaintiff’s allegations were, in the court’s words, “revolting” – including use of the words “black motherfucker” and “stupid nigger” – they were insufficiently demonstrative of a hostile work…

Read More Hostile Work Environment Claim Dismissed; Secondhand “Black Motherfucker” Comment, Among Others, Insufficient
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In Assue v. UPS, INC., 2018 WL 3849843 (S.D.N.Y. 2018), the court granted defendant’s motion for summary judgment and dismissed plaintiff’s race discrimination claims. From the decision: Plaintiff also attempts to raise an inference of discrimination by pointing to his purportedly unfair assignments and the denial of a work-issue laptop and encrypted USB flash drive.16 Any…

Read More Race Discrimination Claim Dismissed; Subjective Belief Insufficient; Alleged Harasser Was an “Equal Opportunity Offender”
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In Watkins v. First Student, Inc., 2018 WL 1135480 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 28, 2018), the court dismissed plaintiff’s race- and gender-based hostile work environment claims. Here, those claims faltered – as many do – because the alleged “hostility” was not due to plaintiff’s protected class(es). From the decision: Taking the allegations of the Complaint, the May…

Read More Hostile Work Environment Claims Against First Student, Inc. Fail Due to Lack of Connection Between Alleged Bullying Etc. and Protected Class(es)
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In Khater v. API Industries d/b/a Aluf Plastics, Inc., 2017 WL 6515531 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 19, 2017), the court dismissed plaintiff’s hostile work environment claim because plaintiff failed to “exhaust administrative remedies” at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission with respect to that claim. This decision illustrates the pitfalls present when pursuing federal employment discrimination claims,…

Read More Hostile Work Environment Claim Dismissed as Not Administratively Exhausted at the EEOC
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