News & Analysis as of

Employment Discrimination Sex Discrimination

Morgan, Brown & Joy, LLP

Department of Justice Issues New Guidance Related to Employers’ DEI Programs

On July 29, 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a memorandum, providing further guidance on the application of federal antidiscrimination laws, policies, programs, and practices, paying particular attention to...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Rhode Island Bars Workplace Discrimination Based on Menopause Symptoms

On June 24, 2025, Rhode Island enacted a law barring employers from discriminating against workers because of their menopause symptoms. The law requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for workers experiencing...more

Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP

U.S. Attorney General Issues New Guidance on DEI Programs and Policies

On July 29, 2025, the U.S. Attorney General issued a memorandum that “clarifies the application of federal antidiscrimination laws to programs or initiatives that may involve discriminatory practices, including those labeled...more

Tucker Arensberg, P.C.

What Employers Need to Know After Supreme Court’s Reverse Discrimination Decision

On June 5, 2025, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, 145 S. Ct. 1540 (2025), making clear that an employee-plaintiff who is a member of a majority group cannot be held...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

DOJ provides guidance on DEI and unlawful discrimination

Better late than never. Six months after President Trump ordered the federal government to end “illegal DEI,” the U.S. Department of Justice issued a Memorandum providing guidance on diversity-related practices that it...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Doing Nothing in Response to a Report of Sexual Harassment Could Cost You Millions – the LAPD Recently Learned the Hard Way

If an employee complains about a sexually suggestive picture circulating in the workplace that looks like her but is not, is that a hostile work environment complaint? It might be. In Lillian Carranza v. City of Los Angeles,...more

Poyner Spruill LLP

Why Comparator Analysis Matters: A Key Fourth Circuit Ruling

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Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 generally prohibits covered employers from taking adverse actions against employees on the basis of race, sex, and other protected categories. Employee discipline is often the subject...more

Husch Blackwell LLP

Proselytizing Online, Fired in Real Life: Are Anti-LGBTQ+ Views Protected by Title VII?

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Earlier this month, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement, commenced litigation against Rock Snowpark on July 2, 2025, for allegedly retaliating...more

Kelley Drye & Warren LLP

Recent Settlement Latest in Developing Trend in Reverse Discrimination Cases

It was announced on July 7 that IBM had resolved a former consultant’s ​“reverse” discrimination claim for an undisclosed sum, closing the door on his Title VII race and sex discrimination lawsuit. This settlement is yet...more

Maynard Nexsen

Supreme Court Brings Clarity to "Reverse Discrimination" Claims

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The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a unanimous opinion holding that Title VII does not impose a heightened or different burden of proof for majority-group plaintiffs. Simply put, “reverse discrimination” Title VII claims...more

DCI Consulting

[Webinar] Summer 2025 Update: Affirmative Action for Federal Contractors - July 23rd, 2:00 pm - 2:30 pm EDT

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The first half of 2025 brought unprecedented changes for federal contractors seeking to comply with federal affirmative action requirements. The rescission of Executive Order 11246 via Executive Order 14173 upended decades of...more

Jones Day

U.S. Supreme Court Ends Heightened Evidentiary Hurdle for "Majority Group" Plaintiffs in Title VII Discrimination Cases

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On June 5, 2025, the Supreme Court decided Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services and held that a "majority group" plaintiff in a Title VII case need not satisfy a heightened evidentiary burden to establish a prima-facie...more

Fisher Phillips

In the Crosshairs: Untangling the Legal Landscape on LGBTQ+ Workplace Rights Under Title VII

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The EEOC recently updated its workplace harassment enforcement guidance to reflect a Texas federal court ruling that found the Biden-era EEOC had overstepped its authority by requiring bathroom, dress, and pronoun...more

Cranfill Sumner LLP

Supreme Court Unanimously Rejects “Background Circumstances” Requirement for “Reverse Discrimination” Claims

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The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held on June 5, 2025, that majority group plaintiffs are not required to meet a heightened evidentiary standard of showing “background circumstances” to establish a prima facie case of...more

Vinson & Elkins LLP

Supreme Court Sides with Heterosexual Woman: Majority Plaintiffs and Minority Group Plaintiffs Alike Need the Same Evidence of...

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On June 5, 2025—in the midst of heightened scrutiny of diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) initiatives triggered by executive orders issued by President Trump as well as various federal agency guidance—the Supreme Court...more

Bricker Graydon LLP

Supreme Court Rejects “Background Circumstances” Requirement for Title VII Discrimination Claims in Ames v. Ohio Department of...

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In a unanimous decision issued on June 5, 2025, the United States Supreme Court held the “background circumstances” requirement imposed by some lower courts in what are often referred to as “reverse discrimination” claims is...more

McGlinchey Stafford

SCOTUS Ames Decision: Everyone’s in a “Protected Class”

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In employment law, we traditionally think of discrimination as applying to minority groups: African Americans, women, homosexuals, or other legally protected groups. In analyzing discrimination claims, one of the first...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Yes, Menstrual Cramps May Qualify as a Disability Under ADA

If a qualified job candidate asks to reschedule a second-round interview due to severe menstrual cramps associated with endometriosis, is that a request for an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act? If you...more

Ballard Spahr LLP

Reverse Discrimination Lawsuits Are So Back

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On June 5, 2025, a unanimous Supreme Court eliminated the requirement for a higher evidentiary standard for majority plaintiffs (white, male, heterosexual, etc.) who claim discrimination under Title VII (also known as reverse...more

Cole Schotz

U.S. Supreme Court Issues Reversal for Title VII “Reverse Discrimination” Claims

Cole Schotz on

On June 5, 2025, in a 9-0 opinion, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Ames v. Ohio Dept. of Youth Services that members of a “majority group” do not have to satisfy a heightened evidentiary standard to prevail on a...more

Harris Beach Murtha PLLC

SCOTUS Rejects Heightened Standard for Title VII Majority Group

In Ames v. Ohio Dep’t of Youth Servs., No. 23-1039, 2025 WL 1583264, (U.S. June 5, 2025), the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that majority group plaintiffs (in this instance, a heterosexual plaintiff) do not need to meet...more

Morrison & Foerster LLP

Texas Federal Court Vacates Gender Identity-Related Sections of the EEOC’s 2024 Harassment Guidance but Other Sections Remain...

On May 15, 2025, a federal district court in Texas vacated sections of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC or the “Commission”) 2024 Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace (the “2024 Enforcement...more

Bass, Berry & Sims PLC

Supreme Court – Same Burden of Proof Applies to All Plaintiffs in Title VII Discrimination Claims, Removing Greater Burden for...

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On June 5, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision, overruling the Sixth Circuit’s “background circumstances” rule in employment discrimination cases. The background circumstances rule required members of a...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Pay Equity Studies in Focus: Navigating Privilege and Public Disclosure Risks

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A recent decision from the U.S. District Court in Kansas—Spears v. Thermo Fisher Scientific—ruled that a pay equity analysis conducted primarily for business purposes was not protected by attorney-client privilege or the work...more

Pierce Atwood LLP

Supreme Court Clarifies Title VII Evidentiary Standards in “Reverse Discrimination” Cases, Removing Heightened Standard

Pierce Atwood LLP on

In Ames v. Ohio Dept. of Youth Servs., the U.S. Supreme Court recently settled a circuit split and held that the Sixth Circuit’s “background circumstances” rule, which was applied only to plaintiffs from majority...more

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