Employment Discrimination Law: Key Concepts and Defenses in Civil Rights Cases

Employment-at-Will

Employer can hire/fire for any reason (or no reason) unless it violates a legal limitation (anti-discrimination laws, public policy, contractual protections).

Protected Classes

Title VII: Race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation + gender identity), and national origin. ADEA: Age 40 or older. ADA: Qualified individuals with physical or mental disabilities requiring reasonable accommodation.

Disparate Treatment

Intentional discrimination because of protected class status.

Plaintiff's Burden

Member of protected class. Qualified. Adverse employment action. Treated differently than similarly situated employees.

Employer's Defense

Legitimate, non-discriminatory reason. Then, burden shifts back to employee to prove pretext.

Mixed-Motive Discrimination

Employment decision based partly on illegal factor (protected class) and partly on legal factors.

Disparate Impact

Neutral policy disproportionately harms a protected group. No intent required.

Employer's Defense (Disparate Impact)

Business Necessity - the policy is job-related and consistent with business needs.

BFOQ Defense

Bona Fide Occupational Qualification. Allows intentional discrimination ONLY if reasonably necessary to business operations.

Religious Discrimination

Employer Duty: Must provide reasonable accommodation unless it causes undue burden.

Sexual Harassment - Quid Pro Quo

Supervisor conditions job benefits (hire, raise, promotion) or avoidance of negative action on submission to sexual demands.

Hostile Work Environment

Unwelcome conduct because of sex that is severe or pervasive enough to alter employment conditions (objective + subjective standard).

Employer Defense (Ellerth/Faragher)

If no tangible employment action, employer avoids liability by showing reasonable steps to prevent/correct harassment and employee unreasonably failed to use the system.

Retaliation Elements

Protected activity (complaint, participation). Adverse action. Causal connection.

ADA - Disability

Physical or mental impairment that substantially limits major life activities.

Reasonable Accommodation

Adjustment enabling employee to perform essential functions.

Undue Hardship

Significant difficulty or expense.

Age Discrimination (ADEA)

Protected Class: Employees 40+ years old.

Mixed Motives (ADEA)

Not allowed - must be the determining or 'but-for' cause.

EEOC - Administrative Exhaustion

Requirement: Before suing under Title VII, an employee must file a charge with the EEOC / state agency and receive a right-to-sue letter.

Key Defenses Overview

Business necessity (impact), BFOQ (treatment - limited), Legitimate nondiscriminatory reason (treatment), Ellerth/Faragher defense (harassment), Seniority systems allowed if non-discriminatory.

Ames v. (Supreme Court 2024)

Employers cannot discriminate for or against any protected class — even if motivated by past injustices.

Express Warranty - UCC 2-313

Creation: Any affirmation of fact or promise, description of goods, or sample/model that becomes part of the bargain and can be objectively verified.

Implied Warranty of Merchantability - UCC 2-314

Definition: When the seller is a merchant of goods of the kind, products must be fit for their ordinary purpose and conform to average quality standards.

Implied Warranty of Fitness for a Particular Purpose - UCC 2-315

Definition: Seller knows the buyer's specific use and that buyer relies on seller's skill or judgment.

Royal Indemnity Co. v. Tyco Fire Products

Warranty liability can extend upstream in the chain of distribution (vertical privity exceptions) when injury is foreseeable.

Moss v. Batesville Casket Co.

Emotional distress claims allowed where product defect foreseeably causes severe emotional suffering linked to personal interests.

Negligence Product Liability - Four Theories

Negligent manufacture, negligent inspection, negligent failure to warn, negligent design.

Strict Liability Product Claims

Focus: The product, not the manufacturer's conduct. Product was defective and unreasonably dangerous when sold.

Defective Design Factors

Foreseeable harm, severity of harm, probability of harm, feasible alternative design, industry standards.

Risk-Utility Test

Weighs whether risks outweigh usefulness considering: cost, functionality, and safer alternatives.

Branham v. Ford Motor Co.

Establishes risk-utility test as the dominant standard in design defect cases.

Failure to Warn Elements

Foreseeable risk, lack of adequate warnings/instructions, causation of injury.

No Warning Required

When a risk is open and obvious to a reasonable consumer.

Daniell v. Ford Motor Co.

Manufacturer must warn when non-obvious dangers associated with foreseeable misuse could cause harm.

Damages - Basis-of-the-Bargain

Contract measure - difference between value promised and value received.

Consequential Damages

Include personal injuries, emotional distress, lost wages, property damage, loss of consortium/enjoyment.

Punitive Damages

Awarded for willful or reckless disregard for safety - to punish + deter.

Privity - Vertical Privity

Relationship in the supply chain (manufacturer → distributor → retailer → buyer).

Vertical Privity

Relationship in the supply chain (manufacturer → distributor → retailer → buyer).

Horizontal Privity

Extends protection to family members, guests, bystanders injured by the defective product.

Limitation on Consequential Damages

Allowed only for purely economic loss. Cannot limit when personal injury is involved - may be unconscionable and unenforceable.

Product misuse

Not reasonably foreseeable use.

Assumption of risk

Knew danger, used anyway.

Comparative negligence

Plaintiff fault reduces recovery.

Foreseeability

Manufacturer liable for harms that are reasonably foreseeable at time of design/manufacture.

Supremacy Clause

Federal law preempts conflicting state law.

Preemption Doctrine

Even if a state law is within the state's border, it is invalid if it interferes with interstate commerce or contradicts federal regulation.

Commerce Clause

Congress may regulate interstate commerce, and intrastate activities that have a substantial effect on interstate commerce.

Incorporation Doctrine

Most of the Bill of Rights applies to states through the 14th Amendment Due Process Clause.

Procedural Due Process

Before the government deprives life, liberty, or property: Must provide notice + opportunity to be heard before a neutral decision-maker.

Substantive Due Process

Protects fundamental rights from unjustified government interference.

Equal Protection Clause

Government must treat similarly-situated individuals alike unless justified by a legitimate legal purpose.

Strict Scrutiny

Applied When: Law targets suspect classifications (race, ethnicity, national origin) or restricts fundamental rights.

Intermediate Scrutiny

Applied When: Laws involving biological sex or commercial speech.

Rational Basis Test

Applied When: All other classifications (economic, social policy). Gov't wins unless law is purely based on hostility or prejudice.

Political Speech Protection

Highest level of protection. Corporations have same political speech rights as individuals (Citizens United logic).

Commercial Speech

Regulated under intermediate scrutiny unless it includes a political component → triggers strict scrutiny.

True Threats Standard

Speech must show objective manifestation of intent to commit violence - insults/obscenity alone are not enough.

Caremark Duties (In re Caremark)

Directors must implement reasonable compliance and monitoring systems.

Duty of Care

Make informed, prudent decisions.

Duty of Loyalty

Avoid self-dealing / conflicts.

Duty of Obedience

Act within corporate authority & law.

Duty of Good Faith & Disclosure

Honesty, transparency, oversight.

Business Judgment Rule

Presumption courts do not second-guess informed, good-faith decisions made in honest belief they benefit shareholders.

Director Oversight Liability

Failure to monitor legal/reputational risks = breach of duty of oversight.

Shareholder Primacy Rule

The legal purpose of a corporation is Shareholder Wealth Maximization (SWM).

Stakeholder Theory

Philosophy prioritizing employees, community, environment - NOT the law.