Category Archives: Discrimination

Fifth Circuit Reminds Plaintiffs That Not Every Unpleasant Experience At Work Is Something They Can Sue Over Under Title VII’s Anti-Discrimination Provision

Posted on November 15, 2018 by

In Stroy v. Gibson, 896 F.3d 693 (5th Cir. 2018), opinion here, the plaintiff, Stroy, was an African-American doctor for the VA. Dr. Stroy believed that the VA implemented a peer review of his patient care decisions because of his … Continue reading →

Posted in At Will Employment, Discrimination, EEOC, Houston Employment Law, Houston Executive Lawyer, Houston Retaliation Law, Human Resources

Fifth Circuit Holds That A Supervisor’s Gender Related Comments Are Not “Direct Evidence” Of Gender Discrimination In Pay

Posted on November 14, 2018 by

In Herster v. Board of Supervisors of Louisiana State Univ., 887 F.3d 177 (5th Cir. 2018), opinion here, the plaintiff, Herster was a female part-time instructor at LSU. LSU had hired her husband at its law school, and then found … Continue reading →

Posted in At Will Employment, Discrimination, Houston Employment Law, Houston Executive Lawyer, Houston Retaliation Law, Retaliation, Whistleblower

Court Holds That Once An Employer Acts With An Illegal, Retaliatory Motive Against An Employee, The Employee’s Mildly Inappropriate Response Is Not Sufficient To Remove The Taint Of Illegal Retaliation

Posted on April 25, 2017 by

In Fisher v. Lufkin Industries, __ F.3d __, No. 15-40428, 2017 WL 562444 (5th Cir., Feb. 10, 2017), the African-American plaintiff, Fisher, complained to Lufkin’s VP of HR that his supervisor referred to him as “boy,” which he regarded as … Continue reading →

Posted in Discrimination, Houston Employment Law, Houston Retaliation Law, Retaliation

Fifth Circuit Holds That Employees Interviewed As Part Of A Sexual Harassment Investigation Have Greater Protection From Retaliation

Posted on June 7, 2016 by

Mark Oberti writes: Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which covers Texas, Mississippi, and Louisiana, affirmed that an employee interviewed as part of a company’s internal investigation into sex harassment complaints is protected from retaliation under … Continue reading →

Posted in Discrimination, EEOC, Houston Employment Law, Houston Retaliation Law, Retaliation, Whistleblower

EEOC Takes Aggressive Positions On Homosexual Rights In The Workplace Under Title VII

Posted on March 28, 2016 by

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) sometimes announces its position on legal issues under Title VII. While the EEOC’s pronouncements are not binding on courts, they often have consequences on employers anyway because the EEOC is the government agency that … Continue reading →

Posted in Discrimination, Dodd Frank, Houston Employment Law

New Fifth Circuit ADA Decision Illustrates The Pro-employee Impact Of The Amendments Congress Passed To The ADA

Posted on March 9, 2016 by

In 2011, Jacobs Field Services North America, Inc. offered Michael Cannon, a mechanical engineer with 20 years’ experience, a field engineer position at a Colorado mining site. But very shortly thereafter, Jacobs rescinded the offer after learning Cannon had a … Continue reading →

Posted in Disability, Discrimination, EEOC, Houston Employment Law, Human Resources

Victims Of Disability Discrimination Have Short Time Limits To Act

Posted on February 21, 2014 by

We are blogging on Mark Oberti’s paper on the “5 Things Employers And Employees Need To Know About Cancer In The Workplace” Under the ADA, an employee has only 300 days to file an EEOC Charge of Discrimination from the … Continue reading →

Posted in Disability, Discrimination, EEOC, FMLA, Houston Employment Law, Human Resources | Tagged , , , , , ,

Post-Rimkus Duty of Preservation and Spoliation of Evidence Decisions (Part VIII)

Posted on December 11, 2013 by

We are blogging on “Non-competes, Trade Secrets, Fiduciary Duties, and the Inevitable Disclosure Doctrine.” Mark Oberti has prepared a detailed paper on all of these issues, which can be found here. The following post discusses how other courts view Rimkus … Continue reading →

Posted in Discrimination, Houston Employment Law, Houston Executive Lawyer, Non Compete Agreements, Trade Secrets

Retaliation And The Exhaustion Requirement: A Conflict Is Brewing

Posted on May 10, 2013 by

Our last video of this week discusses the steps a plaintiff must go through to exhaust a retaliation claim before bringing a lawsuit. We cover this issue in detail in our paper. In Gupta v. East Texas State Univ., 654 … Continue reading →

Posted in Discrimination, Houston Employment Law, Houston Retaliation Law | Tagged ,

Denying Discrimination Can Be Proof Of Retaliation If An Employer Uses The Wrong Words

Posted on April 25, 2013 by

Today’s video podcast discusses a situation in which an employer appears to leap to a conclusion about an employee’s motivation behind a complaint of discrimination. Mark’s paper discusses this issue in more depth. In short, it is not unusual for … Continue reading →

Posted in Discrimination, Houston Employment Law, Houston Retaliation Law, Retaliation | Tagged ,