A disability is not a license to harass
Federal disability discrimination laws exist to ensure that people with disabilities are judged on their abilities—not their diagnoses. They...
WIRTW #803: the 'Tubthumping' edition
By Jon Hyman
🎶 I get knocked down, but I get up again… 🎶 Like just about everyone else of a certain age, I know every word to Tubthumping. It's one...
DEI is not a get-out-of-summary-judgment-free card — but it can become evidence of discrimination
By Jon Hyman
A white man gets fired. His employer has a DEI program. Therefore, the DEI program caused his termination. That argument has become increasi...
"Boys will be boys" is not a harassment defense
By Jon Hyman
The facts in Sharpe-Miller v. Walmart read less like a judicial opinion and more like an HR nightmare. An assistant store manager allegedly...
AI Isn't the Problem. Lazy Lawyering Is.
By Jon Hyman
Another day, another sanctions opinion involving a lawyer who filed AI-generated legal work product riddled with hallucinated cases. This ti...
Apple v. OpenAI offers a master class in spotting trade secret theft before it's too late
By Jon Hyman
Apple's newly filed trade secret lawsuit against OpenAI contains an allegation that should make every employer's ears perk up. Accor...
WIRTW #802: the 'it's a small world' edition
By Jon Hyman
I love to travel. It's not just about the places you see or the things you do. It's also about the people you meet. "Where are ...
When the boss gets involved, the investigation is already in trouble.
By Jon Hyman
Last week, The New York Times published a deeply reported investigation alleging that Donald Trump personally intervened with FIFA Presid...
The 4th Circuit just made wage-and-hour class actions a lot harder to certify
By Jon Hyman
Not every wage-and-hour lawsuit belongs as a class action. That's the lesson from the 4th Circuit's recent decision in Overby v. Anh...
Why your noncompete agreement could become "Exhibit A" in a discrimination lawsuit.
By Jon Hyman
For years, employers have treated noncompete agreements as just another item in the onboarding paperwork. Hand over the offer letter, the ha...
The DOL's World Cup warning is really an overtime compliance warning
By Jon Hyman
The Department of Labor has a message for employers in cities hosting the 2026 World Cup: We're here to help you comply with federal wa...
WIRTW #801: the 'dads' edition
By Jon Hyman
Sunday is Father's Day. Which makes this lawsuit especially worth paying attention to. Emilio Arellano claims that Golden State Cider fi...
Pride Night, Bible Verses, and When Title VII Protections Collide
By Jon Hyman
Three San Francisco Giants pitchers are facing backlash after writing a Bible passage on their Pride Night caps during a team-sponsored LGBT...
Regrets, I've had a few.
By Jon Hyman
My life's biggest regret is that I never studied abroad. The opportunity was there. I just didn't take it. At the time, it felt like...
Sometimes the merits don't matter. And that's exactly the point.
By Jon Hyman
Imagine you walk into court with what appears to be a strong case. The law is on your side. The facts are on your side. Even the judge seems...
DOJ's attack on disparate impact gets Title VII exactly backwards
By Jon Hyman
The Department of Justice just issued a legal opinion claiming that disparate impact liability is unconstitutional because it supposedly ...
Unpaid leave is an ADA reasonable accommodation; it just can't be the only one you offer
By Jon Hyman
If your ADA accommodation policy starts with "take unpaid leave," you're doing it wrong. Just ask the 15 Dunkin' Donuts fr...
The EEOC's new Enforcement Plan is way more politics than strategy
By Jon Hyman
The EEOC has replaced its 2024-2028 Strategic Enforcement Plan with a new National Enforcement Plan for 2025-2029 . The change is more than ...
WIRTW #800: the 'world cup' edition
By Jon Hyman
The World Cup kicks off on June 11, and plenty of matches will be played during the workday. (June 17, I'm looking at you. Portugal vs. ...
Ohio's new ethics guide — Artificial Intelligence for Lawyers and Judicial Officers — leaves one big question unanswered
By Jon Hyman
Ohio's new AI Ethics Guide for Lawyers is worth reading. It tackles many of the questions lawyers have been asking since generative AI ...