Many times, instances of discrimination may present the possibility of violations of federal, state, and city law. Sometimes, the worker may raise these claims in separate lawsuits. It is important to understand that just because you were unsuccessful in pursuing a federal claim does not necessarily mean that you cannot get justice via a claim using the New York State Human Rights Law or New York City Human Rights Law, as those state and city laws often have more liberal pleading standards than their federal counterparts. A knowledgeable New York employment discrimination lawyer can help you review what has already taken place and then recommend a plan for going forward.
A recent employment discrimination case illustrates how an employee may be able to go forward under city law even if they previously lost under federal law. In the case, the employee was a woman who worked as an ERISA attorney for an insurance company and was the daughter of a mother with disabilities.
The employer granted the attorney a flexible work schedule to deal with her mother’s needs. However, after six years, the employer fired the attorney, purportedly because of attendance and availability issues. The following year, the attorney brought a federal lawsuit alleging associational discrimination in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Ultimately, the federal court sided with the employer, granting summary judgment in its favor.
After the attorney lost in federal court, she initiated a state-court action alleging that the employer discriminated against her because of her caregiver responsibilities, in violation of the NYCHRL. The employer subsequently moved for summary judgment, citing the prior federal court decision as the basis for its argument.
The crux of the employer’s argument regarding the federal court decision was a legal concept called “collateral estoppel.” Collateral estoppel, sometimes called issue preclusion, means that a party cannot relitigate in a subsequent lawsuit “an issue clearly raised in a prior action or proceeding and decided against that party.”
As the state court judge explained, collateral estoppel requires the satisfaction of two essential conditions. One, the issue in the second lawsuit must be “identical to an issue which was raised, necessarily decided, and material in the first action.” Two, the plaintiff must have had a “full and fair opportunity to litigate the issue in the earlier action.”
The Importance of New York’s Liberal Pleading Standards
The court determined that the attorney’s discrimination claim under federal law was not identical to her claim under the NYCHRL and, because they were not identical, the employer’s collateral estoppel argument necessarily failed. In explaining its reasoning, the court cited a 2021 decision.
In that 2021 case, the employee unsuccessfully brought federal claims for violations of the ADA and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. After that defeat, the employee brought a subsequent action alleging violations of the NYCHRL. The court in that case noted that the pleading standards for the ADA and the ADEA are exacting, requiring “but-for” causation. By contrast, NYCHRL has a liberal pleading standard, only requiring an employee to show that membership in a protected class was “a motivating factor” in the employer’s adverse employment action. The judge ruled that “allegations that would be insufficient to state a federal claim might well be enough to state a cause of action under the NYCHRL.”
For that reason, collateral estoppel did not apply in the 2021 case. The trial court applied this same reasoning in rejecting the employer’s collateral estoppel argument in the attorney’s case.
What this case should tell you is that just because you lost your federal claim, that does not mean that all is lost. The standards of New York State and New York City are often less strict than federal law, meaning that you may still have an opportunity for compensation under the NYCHRL or NYSHRL. To learn more about your options, get in touch with the skilled New York employment discrimination attorneys at Phillips & Associates, PLLC. Our attorneys have the knowledge you need to provide the effective advocacy you deserve. Contact us online or call (866) 229-9441 to set up a free and confidential consultation today.