Supreme Court Rejects Elevated Standard for Proving Reverse Discrimination Claims

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP
Contact

The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rejected use of a special legal test for plaintiffs to prove illegal bias in reverse discrimination cases. Ames v. Ohio Dept. of Youth Services involved claims by a heterosexual employee that she was twice passed over for promotion in favor of homosexual coworkers, in violation of Title VII’s prohibition against sex discrimination.  

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals analyzed the plaintiff’s claims using a "background circumstances" test that required her to demonstrate a pattern and practice of reverse discrimination against members of a protected majority classification. This demonstration was not required of minority employees alleging discrimination.

The Supreme Court found no basis in Title VII for differentiating between discrimination against majority and minority members of a protected class. Both sets of plaintiffs are subject to the same evidentiary standards necessary for their claims to proceed to trial. A concurring opinion written by Justice Clarence Thomas went beyond the majority decision, questioning the use of the McDonnell Douglas burden shifting framework in employment discrimination cases.

The unanimous decision in this case reflects the Supreme Court’s unwillingness to establish separate standards for some Title VII litigants. While the decision should not make much practical difference to employers, it could encourage some employees to pursue reverse discrimination claims by requiring standard burdens of proof to establish their claims.

[View source.]

DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations. Attorney Advertising.

© Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Written by:

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP
Contact
more
less

PUBLISH YOUR CONTENT ON JD SUPRA NOW

  • Increased visibility
  • Actionable analytics
  • Ongoing guidance

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP on:

Reporters on Deadline

"My best business intelligence, in one easy email…"

Your first step to building a free, personalized, morning email brief covering pertinent authors and topics on JD Supra:
*By using the service, you signify your acceptance of JD Supra's Privacy Policy.
Custom Email Digest
- hide
- hide