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Phillips & Associates: Circuit Court Recognizes "Cat's Paw" Liability for Employer NegligenceOn August 29, 2016, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit explicitly recognized "cat's paw" liability in Title VII discrimination matters, and further found that liability may be imputed to an employer on the basis of employer negligence. Injected into employment law, the term "cat's paw" refers to a situation in which an employee is subjected to an adverse employment action by a decision maker who has no discriminatory motive himself, but who has been manipulated by an employee who does have such intent to bring about the adverse employment action through his or her own bad acts. The plaintiff Vasquez complained to her supervisors that a co-worker had sexually harassed her. However, the co-worker concocted a story and showed the employer fake "proof" in retaliation, claiming that she had been sexually harassing him. Vasquez was fired as a result. In her lawsuit, Vasquez claimed that her employer negligently failed to recognize that her co-worker's actions were retaliatory. The District Court dismissed Vasquez's lawsuit, holding that an employer cannot be liable when the bad acts are conducted by a co-worker as opposed to a supervisor. The Second Circuit disagreed, finding that an employer may be liable when the employer's own negligence gives effect to the unlawful intent of any employee (co-workers included). With its decision, in a case of first impression, the Second Circuit explicitly recognized "cat's paw" liability. Furthermore, the Court also held for the first time that an employer may be liable if the employer was itself negligent in allowing an employee to achieve his or her desired effect when it knew or should haveknown of that employee's retaliatory animus. The full decision is here: http://hr.cch.com/ELD/VasquezEmpress082916.pdf Casey Wolnowski, of Phillips & Associates, represents Vasquez and argued before the Second Circuit. He is a New York-based employment discrimination attorney who focuses on "Cat's Paw" liability and employer negligence. He stated, "We are pleased with the decision; this case hopefully highlights the need for employers to conduct thorough investigations when confronted with employees complaining of unlawful discrimination." Mr. Wolnowski is a leading practitioner in the area and, following this decision, was quoted in articles published by Bloomberg (News - Alert) BNA, the New York Law Journal (http://www.newyorklawjournal.com/id=1202766232803/Recognizing-Cats-Paw-Liability-Circuit-Revives-Bias-Suit?mcode=1202615036097&curindex=1 ), the Wall Street Journal (http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2016/08/29/appeals-court-weakens-employer-liability-shield-in-discrimination-cases/), as well as Law360 (http://www.law360.com/articles/834006/cat-s-paw-theory-applies-to-coworkers-2nd-circ-says). For inquiries, contact Casey Wolnowski at (212) 248-7431, or [email protected]. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160908006653/en/ |
