A Revival of Summary Judgment for Employers

Published in The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel, November 2005.

Many courts, including the United States Supreme Court, have recommended summary judgment as the appropriate mechanism for disposing of meritless employment discrimination claims.¹ Even so, courts have shown some reluctance to grant these motions, on the theory that discriminatory intent is a matter best determined at trial. There is no such reluctance in New York State, where the summary judgment rule is alive and well. In 2004, New York’s highest court issued a decision emphasizing the availability of summary judgment for employers.² Since then, courts have consistently dismissed cases, and trial has been avoided, where the employee cannot refute his or her poor performance, show a tangible adverse job action or come forward with discriminatory remarks that are continuous or pervasive.