Supreme Court Narrows Ability to Prove Age Discrimination
The U.S. Supreme Court, in a June 18, 2009 decision, has limited a claimant’s ability to prove an age discrimination case in court. The case, Gross v. FBL Financial Services, Inc. (08-441), decided by a 5-4 margin, decided a burden of proof issue that had never been completely resolved since the passage of the ADEA in 1967.
The question involved what happens in “mixed motive” cases, where there may have been some “legitimate” (i.e., non-discriminatory) factor, in addition to age, that played a part in the employer’s action. In Gross, for example, the plaintiff was demoted as part of a restructuring, but there was evidence age bias played a part in the decision.
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