News & Analysis as of

Employment Litigation Religious Accommodation

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

Three religious accommodation trends: The good, the bad and the “buckle up for turbulence”

Two years ago, the long dormant duty to accommodate employees’ religious beliefs and practices was awakened by the U.S. Supreme Court in Groff v. Dejoy. Gone were the days when an employer could justify the denial of a...more

Littler

The New Era of Religious Accommodations: Clarifying the Standard for “Sincere Religious Beliefs” and Evaluating Undue Hardship

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Since vaccines became available in response to COVID-19, courts have dealt with an onslaught of litigation involving religious accommodation in the workplace. Most recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

SCOTUS wraps it up: Four lessons for employers

"Reverse discrimination," ADA, religion, and nationwide injunctions. The 2024-25 term of the U.S. Supreme Court is over. Two decisions at the end of the term directly addressed employment law issues, and two others will have...more

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP

Monthly Highlights – UK Employment Law – June 2025

In this month’s highlights, our team summarises the latest developments in UK employment law and their implications for employers. 1. In Prähl and Ors v Lapinski, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (the “EAT”) upheld an...more

Cozen O'Connor

Facial Hair, Firefighters, and Free Exercise

Cozen O'Connor on

A single exception can now unravel your entire workplace safety policy. The Third Circuit's decision on May 30, 2025, in Smith v. Atlantic City, underscores how even minor exceptions to grooming or masking rules can expose...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Burn Grooming Policy, Burn? Third Circuit Reignites Bearded Firefighter’s Religious Accommodation and Free Exercise Claims

If you have a grooming policy based on safety factors (like no beards for firefighters), does that trump an employee’s request for a religious accommodation? Maybe not. A recent Third Circuit decision, Smith v. City of...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

Court scraps EEOC guidance on pronouns, restrooms, and dress

Don't expect the EEOC to appeal. In April 2024, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace. The Enforcement Guidance addressed, among other things, harassment...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

Dads have workplace rights, too -- with a twist.

Dad-of-seven will go to jury on religious discrimination. This sounds like the kind of thing that might happen to a woman, but this time it (allegedly) happened to a man. A devout Catholic man (we'll call him "Dad") was...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

EEOC Is Permanently Enjoined From Enforcing Portions of PWFA Final Regulations and EEOC’s Title VII Guidance On Harassment in the...

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

On April 15, 2025, the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota issued its decision granting partial summary judgment to the Catholic Benefits Association, on behalf of its members and the Bismarck...more

Carlton Fields

Seventh Circuit Affirms Order Compelling Arbitration, Holds Arbitration Agreement Applies to Title VII Claim

Carlton Fields on

In Retzios v. Epic Systems Corp., the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals considered an appeal brought by the plaintiff, a former employee of Epic, who was fired after she refused to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The...more

Littler

UK Court of Appeal Decision Addresses Tension Between Religious Beliefs and Reputational Damage

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The UK Court of Appeal (CA) has handed down its judgment in the case of Higgs v. Famor’s School, adding to the growing body of case law that examines the complex issue of balancing employees’ freedom to express potentially...more

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP

Monthly Highlights – UK Employment Law – February 2025

In this month’s instalment, our team summarises the latest UK case law and developments in employment law – and their implications for employers. In Higgs v Farmor’s School [2025] EWCA Civ 109 the Court of Appeal ruled that...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Finding Religion on a Motion to Dismiss: Federal Court Concludes that Plaintiff’s Secular Concerns About COVID Vaccines Do Not...

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In a dispute over workplace vaccination requirements, a federal district court in Oregon joined a growing trend in workplace vaccination litigation when it ruled that a plaintiff’s allegations of religious conflict with...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

[Event] Workplace Horizons 2025 - April 30th - May 2nd, New York, NY

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

The leading educational and networking conference — from the premier firm for employment + labor law - Join us at Workplace Horizons 2025, where attorneys, in-house counsel and HR leaders come together to share and solve...more

Mayer Brown

Court of Appeal Hands Down Judgment in Higgs v Farmor's School Case

Mayer Brown on

The Court of Appeal handed down its highly anticipated judgment in the case of Higgs v Farmor's School. The judgment has significant implications for employers, where their employees express potentially controversial beliefs...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Vax On: Fourth Circuit Reinstates Plaintiff’s Religious Bias Suit in COVID Vaccine Mandate Case

On January 7, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit reversed and remanded a district court’s dismissal of a plaintiff’s Title VII religious bias suit—holding the case was sufficient to survive a motion to...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

A sneak peek at what a religious accommodation trial might look like for a guy who can't work Sundays

After the case went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, on January 30 a federal district court denied dueling motions for summary judgment filed by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, the U.S. Postal Service, and former Postal...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Quorum-Less EEOC and New Acting Chair: What Are the Impacts for Employers?

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

The start of the second Trump Administration has brought significant changes to many areas of employment law, including to federal agencies, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is no exception. Some moves...more

Poyner Spruill LLP

Faith, Fired, and Fourth Circuit: Court Resurrects Religious Discrimination Case Against Inova

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In a significant decision affecting employment discrimination law, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has unanimously reversed the dismissal of a Title VII religious discrimination lawsuit brought by a...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Fourth Circuit Cautions Employers on Deciding Legitimacy of Workers' Religious Beliefs

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many employers established internal procedures to evaluate employees' requests for religious and medical-based exemptions from vaccination mandates. ...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Mandatory COVID Testing Did Not Violate Employee's Religious Beliefs

Lawsuits challenging employers' authority to require measures intended to prevent COVID-19 infections continue to wend their way through the federal judiciary. Last month, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a claim...more

Seward & Kissel LLP

Employment Litigation Roundup: November 2024

Seward & Kissel LLP on

In May 2024, two TD Bank entities (“TD Bank”) sued two former employees and their new employer Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. and one of its subsidiaries (together, “Raymond James”) in Connecticut federal court,...more

Conn Maciel Carey LLP

[Webinar] The Latest in Employment Discrimination Laws - December 12th, 1:00 pm EST

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Employment discrimination in the workplace is alive and well. Indeed, according to Monster’s recent Workplace Discrimination Poll, only 9% of workers claim to have NOT faced some form of workplace discrimination. There have...more

BakerHostetler

Inoculating Employers Against Religious Discrimination Claims - Sixth Circuit Gives University Victory over Employee’s Religious...

BakerHostetler on

It is cold and flu season, and COVID-19 remains an ongoing threat. Have you inoculated your workplace against claims of religious discrimination?...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Seventh Circuit: Religious Discrimination Claim Survives Motion to Dismiss Even if Request For Religious Exemption to COVID-19...

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

Seyfarth Synopsis: In two cases issued by the Seventh Circuit, Passarella and Dottenwhy v. Aspirus, Inc. and Bube and Hedrington v. Aspirus Hospital, Inc. the Court held that at the motion to dismiss stage, the fact that a...more

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