Call Us 919-240-4054A man who left his city job to serve his country is not entitled to sue under the Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA), according to a ruling by the United States Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Oakley Dean Baldwin, a municipal waste manager who served as a chief warrant officer […]
Fourth Circuit
Fourth Circuit rules USERRA retaliation claim can go to trial
In a recent unpublished opinion, Bunting v. Town of Ocean City, the Fourth Circuit partially overturned a grant of summary judgment and allowed the plaintiff to proceed to trial on his USERRA retaliation claim. USERRA is a federal statute that protects armed service members from being discriminated in employment because of their service. Like other anti-discrimination […]
North Carolina judges Diaz and Eagles confirmed to federal bench
Ending two ridiculously long waits, the Senate has finally confirmed Charlotte Judge Albert Diaz to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and Greensboro Judge Catherine Eagles to the Middle District of North Carolina. Both will be excellent judges, and their confirmations have been long overdue. Other North Carolina nominations are still pending though. Former Magistrate Judge Max […]
Judge Wynn confirmed to Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals
Judge Jim Wynn was finally confirmed to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals last week. Judge Wynn was first nominated for the court in 1999. His confirmation comes after months of being held up in the Senate by Republican obstruction after President Obama re-nominated him last year. (Republicans, however, are still holding up the confirmation of […]
Two employment decisions from the Supreme Court
On May 24, the Supreme Court issued two employment-related opinions. The first, Lewis v. Chicago, concerned the filing deadline for disparate impact discrimination cases under Title VII. The black firefighter plaintiffs in the case sought to challenge a written test used for determining promotions. The question was whether their statute of limitations began running when the […]
Fourth Circuit rules for plaintiff in significant gender discrimination opinion
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals recently issued a ringing opinion for employees in Merritt v. Old Dominion Freight Lines, a gender discrimination case until Title VII. The Court’s discussion of gender discrimination, sex stereotyping, and a corporate culture of discrimination is excellent and will make very useful precedent. A long-ish discussion is therefore in order. As […]