Archives: EEOC

Eighth Circuit Affirms $4.6 Million Fee Award Against the EEOC

By Greg Mersol on December 20, 2019 Posted in EEOC

How Many Decades of Litigation is Enough? On retreating from Russia after the disastrous 1812 invasion, Napoleon famously commented, “It is but a step from the sublime to the ridiculous.” That adage applies equally well to the latest opinion in the now 14-year old dispute between the EEOC and trucking company CRST. We’ve blogged various … Continue Reading

Title VII’s Charge Requirement Isn’t Jurisdictional, But It Can Still Be Fatal

By Greg Mersol on June 3, 2019 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC

Some cases look a lot more important at first glance than what they turn out to be. Case in point, today’s decision in Fort Bend County, Texas v. Davis, Case No. 18-525 (U.S. Sup. Ct. June 3, 2019). The Court’s holding was that Title VII’s charge-filing requirement is not jurisdictional. In the end, however, the … Continue Reading

6th Circuit Rejects Crude Statistics Based on Small Sample

By Greg Mersol on June 29, 2018 Posted in EEOC

Case addresses scope of EEOC charge, too The Sixth Circuit has issued an opinion involving a number of class action and employment issues in a case arising out of an unusual fact pattern and convoluted procedural history. The most important of these involve the use of small statistical samples and potential defects in the EEOC … Continue Reading

Court Dismisses Disparate Impact Class Claims Due to Limited EEOC Charge

By Greg Mersol on February 22, 2017 Posted in EEOC

Disparate impact cases are different in kind from the far more common disparate treatment claims that are the staple of single-plaintiff discrimination cases. Disparate treatment claims, of course, are ones in which an employee contends that he or she was treated less favorably than others on account of a protected trait, such as sex, race … Continue Reading

Supreme Court Continues Sanctions Litigation Against the EEOC

By Greg Mersol on May 19, 2016 Posted in EEOC

A slap in the face, maybe, after 11 years Back in 2005, a prospective driver for a trucking company filed a charge with the EEOC contending that two trainers sexually harassed her during an over-the-road trip. That charge triggered a lawsuit in which the EEOC went on to claim that over 250 other women had been … Continue Reading

Unanimous Supreme Court Holds EEOC Must Conciliate

By Greg Mersol on May 4, 2015 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC

. . . just not very much. Title VII was passed with a strong bias toward voluntary, non-litigation methods of dispute resolution. Indeed, the statute requires that even when the EEOC has found probable cause, the Commission “shall endeavor to eliminate [the] alleged unlawful employment practice by informal methods of conference, conciliation, and persuasion.” 42 U.S.C. … Continue Reading

Fourth Circuit Rejects EEOC Expert Report Riddled With Errors

By Greg Mersol and Pat Muldowney on March 18, 2015 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC

We’ve written before on the questionable statistics used by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in other cases, and a recent court of appeals case involving background checks suggests that the EEOC is continuing to use such methods despite scathing criticism from courts. On February 20, 2015, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Rejects EEOC’s Expert Evidence In Proposed Pattern Or Practice Class Action Litigation

By Todd Dawson on April 14, 2014 Posted in EEOC

The EEOC learns what it’s like to be the statue and not the pigeon. The EEOC can’t seem to catch a break these days. After a string of recent cases in which the agency has been forced to pay employer attorneys’ fees for bringing frivolous claims, the most recent zinger came from the Sixth Circuit … Continue Reading

Fourth Circuit Affirms Sanctions Against the EEOC In Action Fraught with Delays

By Greg Mersol on April 7, 2014 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC

Many employers who have dealt with the EEOC in large cases suffer frustration over inexplicable delays combined with at times unreasonable requests for information and/or relief. In a recent case from the Fourth Circuit, that kind of conduct led not only to a dismissal of the underlying claim by laches, but to an attorney fee … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Approves Fee Award Against the EEOC for Meritless Criminal Record Action

By John Lewis on October 15, 2013 Posted in EEOC, Title VII

A divided Sixth Circuit panel affirmed the district court decision in EEOC v. Peoplemark, Inc., (Case No. 11-2582) assessing fees and costs against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) totaling $751,942.48 for continuing to pursue an action it knew to be meritless. On September 29, 2008, the EEOC had filed an action against Peoplemark, Inc., … Continue Reading

Multiple Courts Criticize EEOC Behavior In Class Cases

By Greg Mersol on October 7, 2013 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC, Retail, Title VII

Over the last 5 years, the EEOC has become increasingly aggressive in the bringing and pursuit of broad initiatives and, in particular, class litigation. Cynics can debate whether this springs from a desire to make a difference or one to bully employers through litigation costs into abandoning lawful practices that are not to its liking, … Continue Reading

Maryland Court Rejects EEOC Challenge To Criminal Background Checks

By Greg Mersol on August 19, 2013 Posted in EEOC

Many employers, including the EEOC, use criminal background checks as part of their hiring processes. These checks are a common sense step for employers to ensure that they are not hiring violent offenders in safety-sensitive positions, thieves where money or valuables or concerned, or otherwise expose themselves or the public to employees convicted of dangerous … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Affirms Refusal to Certify Disparate Impact Sex Discrimination Case

By Greg Mersol on May 31, 2013 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC, Rule 23

On May 30, 2013, the Sixth Circuit issued its decision in Davis v. Cintas Corporation, Case No. 10-1662 (6th Cir. May 30, 2013), in which it upheld a district court’s refusal to certify a disparate impact Title VII case, but interestingly found that questions of fact precluding summary judgment on the lead (and now only) … Continue Reading

Ohio District Court Dismisses EEOC Suit Challenging Credit Check Policies

By Greg Mersol on February 13, 2013 Posted in Discrimination, EEOC

Anyone looking for a case rich in irony need look no further than EEOC v. Kaplan Higher Learning Edu. Corp., Case No. 1:10 CV 2882 (N.D. Ohio, Jan. 28, 2013). Kaplan provides, among other services, online college training, and it assists its students with obtaining financial aid from the United States Department of Education. In … Continue Reading

Court Dismisses EEOC ADA Pattern or Practice Claim As Untimely

By Greg Mersol on October 30, 2012 Posted in EEOC

It is no secret that the EEOC is asserting aggressive positions in several arenas, but a recent case reflects that it must continue to follow Title VII’s basic requirements despite its new enforcement prerogatives. In terms of procedural issues, the EEOC has targeted systemic discrimination issues for class or pattern or practice litigation. From a … Continue Reading