The plaintiff was a New York City exam grader and proctor who reported to the New York City Special Commissioner of Investigation that a high school principal tried to enlist plaintiff in a scheme to alter a student's Regent's exam. Plaintiff said no to this and reported the principal. Plaintiff brings this action, claiming he was terminated in retaliation for his whistleblowing. What result? The case is Severin v. New York City Dept. of Educ., a summary order issued on May 1. Morally, plaintiff is in the right. You want whistleblowers like this working for the city. He was probably shocked to ..read more

I would guess that it's a nightmare for a judge to deal with a jury problem during trial. In this case, a juror told the judge a few days into the criminal trial that she thought the defendant had been trailing her in his car a few days earlier, and she had shared this concern with her fellow jurors. The court has to discharge an unqualified juror, but you know the court does not want to declare a mistrial either. What to do? The case is People v. Fisher, issued by the New York Court of Appeals on April 23. The defendant was charged on a drug offense. On the first day of jury selection, one&nb ..read more

The New York State Court of Appeals has held that the City Human Rights Law, one of the most expansive in the nation, does not allow plaintiffs to sue co-workers for discrimination, including the creation of a hostile work environment. The case is Russell v. New York University, issued on April 25. Under Title VII, the federal employment discrimination statute, plaintiffs can only sue their employers. For that reason, and many others, the New York City HRL provides for greater protections, making it easier for plaintiffs to win their cases. The statute has been amended several times over the y ..read more

In this case, the criminal defendant in state court was removed from the courtroom while the jury was issuing its verdict because the trial court decided that a prior warning was not practicable. This is the rare case where the conviction is affirmed even though the defendant was not present in the courtroom during all proceedings. The case is People v. Dunton, issued by the New York Court of Appeals on April. The defendant, standing trial in a shooting case, had a violent record while in custody at Riker's Island, requiring the court take additional security precautions during trial. As the m ..read more

The Court of Appeals has rejected a sexual harassment claim, holding that the plaintiff has not sufficiently alleged quid pro quo harassment in trying to assert that the company president was trying to initiate a sexual relationship. The case is Reed v. Fortive Corp., a summary order issued on April 24. To win a quid pro quo harassment claim you have to show that the supervisor conditions job-related benefits on your decision to have sex with him. In this case, the Court of Appeals (Calabresi, Park and Merriam) holds, plaintiff does not plead such a claim and that her allegations are too concl ..read more

Arbitration can be described as a private justice system that resolves legal disputes if the parties agree to that arrangement. In the employment context, the worker usually signs the arbitration agreement at the start of her employment, and if she wants to sue her employer later on, the case will be routed to JAMS or AAA, the primary arbitration services. But all kinds of non-employment disputes are also arbitrated. Anything can be arbitrated. Courts do not like it when litigants try to get around the arbitration agreement, and they will strictly enforce the Federal Arbitration Act, which pro ..read more

In a major ruling under Title VII (the primary federal employment discrimination statute), the Supreme Court holds that plaintiffs challenging a discriminatory job transfer need only prove the transfer brought about some "disadvantageous" change in an employment term and condition. This ruling rejects the test applied in the Second Circuit and elsewhere, which required that the plaintiff prove a "significant" change in the terms and conditions of employment. Instead, the plaintiff need only prove "some harm respecting an identifiable term or condition of employment." The case is Muldrow v. Cit ..read more

As if this actually bears repeating, and it does not, probable cause is a defense to any false arrest claim, and probable cause is a low bar for the police to satisfy. This means many false arrest claims never see the light of day, even if the criminal defendant was found innocent in criminal court, and even if the charges against the criminal defendant were dropped prior to trial. This case is a good example of how all of this works. The case is Dorsey v. Gannon, a summary order issued on March 29. Plaintiff was arrested and the charges were dismissed, but that does not give plaintiff a trial ..read more

A citizen's group and three named plaintiffs sued this community in Rockland County, claiming that a new zoning law for places of religious worship violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, which mandates church-state separation. The plaintiffs lose. Why? They lack standing to sue. The case is Citizens United to Protect our Neighborhoods v. Village of Chestnut Ridge, New York, issued on April 5, eleven months after oral argument. Accommodating the Orthodox Jewish community, following contentious public hearings, the Village amended its zoning laws so that religious organizatio ..read more

This case involves a man who wants to carry a gun in the state parks of Connecticut. He says he needs the gun for self-defense. The state has not yet arrested plaintiff over this, and it does not appear he actually entered any state parks with his gun. For that reason, the case was dismissed because the district court said plaintiff lacks standing to to bring this pre-enforcement lawsuit. The Court of Appeals reverses. The case is Nastri v. Dykes, a summary order issued on March 29. Standing rules emanate from the Constitution. You need a concrete dispute before the courts can issue a ruling ..read more