Second Circuit Rules Sexual Orientation Discrimination Is Prohibited Under Title VII

In an en banc decision in Zarda v. Altitude Express, Inc., the Second Circuit has become the latest federal appeals court to hold that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is prohibited sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ("Title VII").

Background

The case involved Donald Zarda, a gay male skydiving instructor who brought a sex discrimination claim under Title VII after he was terminated from his job at Altitude Express. Zarda alleged that his termination was based on his failure to conform to male sex stereotypes because he had made reference to his sexual orientation to female clients, which he stated was done in an effort to assuage concerns they might have about being strapped to a man for a tandem skydive.