Articles Posted in Employment Law

A prima facie case of discrimination raises the presumption or inference that the employer unlawfully discriminated against the employee. This is because the Court presumes the employer’s “acts, if otherwise unexplained, are more likely than not based on the consideration of impermissible factors.” Texas Dep’t of Cmty. Affairs v. Burdine, 450 U.S. 248 (1981). In…

Business litigation in Florida often involves claims for trade secret misappropriation under Florida’s Uniform Trade Secret Act (FUTSA) or the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA). For liability to attach under DTSA or FUTSA, the trade secret information must be the fruit of a wrongful acquisition or misappropriation. Misappropriation of a trade secret occurs “where a…

Title VII’s anti-retaliation provision makes it “an unlawful employment practice for an employer to discriminate against any of [its] employees . . . because he has opposed any practice made an unlawful employment practice by this subchapter, or because he has made a charge, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceeding,…

The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination in the “terms, conditions, and privileges of employment.” 42 U.S.C. § 12112(a). The United States Supreme Court has also found cognizable similar claims for hostile work environment under Title VII. Harris v. Forklift Sys., Inc., 510 U.S. 17 (1993). In cases where a current or former employee…

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from discriminating “against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.” 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a)(1). Sexual harassment can constitute discrimination based on sex for purposes of Title VII.…

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits an employer from discriminating against “a qualified individual with a disability because of the disability of such individual in regard to job application procedures, the hiring, advancement, or discharge of the employees, employee compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment.” 42 U.S.C. § 12112.…

Most claims of employment discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as amended) rely on circumstantial evidence. The plaintiff-employee may attempt to prove discrimination through circumstantial evidence by satisfying the United States Supreme Court’s burden-shifting framework set forth it its decision in McDonnell Douglas v. Green, 411 U.S. 792 (1973). The…

In business litigation, courts will enforce non-solicitation agreements against a business’ former employee to protect the business’ substantial customer relationships. Section 542.335, Florida Statutes governs the enforceability of customer non-solicitation agreements. Like other restrictive covenants in Florida, the non-solicitation clause must be: (1) reasonable in time, area, and line of business, (2) supported by a…

A party’s trade secrets are one of the categories of legitimate business interests protected by Florida’s non-compete statute, Section 542.335. Courts will enforce non-compete agreements to protect a party’s legitimate business interests if the interest qualifies as a trade secret under Florida law. In business litigation arising from a non-compete agreement, a common issue is…

Employers typically are not liable for alleged retaliatory acts against their current or former employees when the employee is not qualified for the employment position. This is true under both Florida and federal law governing retaliation claims. The Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992 (FCRA) provides that it is unlawful for “an employer . .…