Tennessee and Sixth Circuit Appellate Update: Fall 2017
This year, I'm beginning a feature on my website which provides a quarterly employment law update of appellate decisions in Tennessee and the Sixth Circuit. As there will be several cases posted in this update each calendar quarter, I've tried to be brief but yet...
Tennessee Appeals Court Addresses Practical Effect of Non-Disparagement Clauses
In Reitz v. City of Mt. Juliet, 2017 WL 3879201 (Tenn. Ct. App., August 31, 2017), the plaintiff Reitz had entered into a settlement agreement in January 2010 that contained a non-disparagement agreement and required the City to provide neutral employment...
Sixth Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment on Public Employee’s First Amendment Claim
In Mayhew v. Town of Smyrna, Tennessee, 2017 WL 1947877 (M.D. Tenn. May 11, 2017) the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a summary judgment grant against Mayhew, an employee of the Town of Smyrna. In this case, Mayhew worked as lab supervisor for the Town’s...
Sixth Circuit Reverses FMLA Summary Judgment Under Cat’s Paw Theory, Trumps Honest Belief Rule
In Marshall v. The Rawlings Company, 2017 WL 1404185 (6th Cir. April 20, 2017), the Sixth Circuit, in a split panel, reversed a district court summary judgment for the employer. In this case, Marshall worked as an analyst and then Team Lead for the defendant, which...
No Title VII Liability Against International Union, Says Sixth Circuit
In Phillips v. UAW International (6th Cir. No. 16-1832, April 12, 2017), the plaintiff brought suit against her International Union under Title VII. An African-American, Phillips had served as chairperson of her local union for several years, and alleged she had been...
Tenth Circuit Denies Enforcement of EEOC Subpoena
In EEOC v. TriCore Reference Laboratories, No. 16-2053 (10th Cir., Feb. 27, 2017), the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals denied enforcement of the EEOC’s request for an administrative subpoena. This case arose out of a charge of disability and pregnancy discrimination...