Page 8 - Los Angeles Vol 5 No 3

CARNEY SHEGERIAN |
Employment Law
Legal Trends Following the #MeToo Movement
Following the watershed #MeToo movement, not only have the number of sexual harassment
and gender discrimination victims coming forward drastically increased, but so too have the legal measures put into place.
In the California State Legislature, several new laws and amendments were put in place to curb harass- ment and protect victims. One such notable measure is Senate Bill 1300. Under SB 1300, Section 12923 was added to the Government Code and amended Section 12940 of the same code, under California’s Fair Employ- ment and Housing Act.
e new statute upholds the stan- dards set by Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in Harris v. Forkli Systems (1993), that “the plainti need not prove that his or her tangible productivity has declined as a result of the harassment.” Instead,
a plainti need only prove that the ha- rassment made their job more di cult to complete.
Once Is Enough
Additionally, the state declares that a single incident of alleged harass- ment is su cient to constitute harass- ment. Previously, plainti s needed to prove that multiple instances of ha- rassment had occurred. Another key amendment is related to summary judgement. e statute states speci - cally, “Harassment cases are rarely ap- propriate for disposition on summary judgement.”
As a result of SB 1300, which was signed Sept. 30, 2018, there are a number of shi s in harassment and discrimination cases that legal pro- fessionals have witnessed. One of the most critical impacts of the statute is that more plainti s will be given the opportunity to bring their cases to court.
Additionally, removing the option of summary judgement puts more pressure on companies to settle cases early on. For those companies who do not settle, the public exposure and negative publicity is now a more com- mon reality than it was in the past. With the increased focused on ha- rassment and discrimination in the workplace, companies who do go to trial in high-pro le harassment and
Companies who do
go to trial in high- profile harassment and discrimination lawsuits become the focus of national attention.
discrimination lawsuits become the focus of national attention.
TheDownsides
On the other hand, the new stat- utes could empower plainti s, pos- sibly even wrongfully, because of the increased likelihood that their cases will go to trial. While the statutes are groundbreaking for victims of harass- ment and discrimination, they have limited the options for those wrong- fully accused.
One potential downside for victims of harassment is an increased rejec- tion of good faith settlement realities. With a greater chance of prevailing in court, plainti s may be less likely to reject good faith settlements. Howev- er, the greater chance of seeing a case make it to trial does not necessarily mean that the plainti will win.
e #MeToo movement, and sub- sequent legal measures put in place following it, have had a signi cant impact on how both plainti s and defendants will handle workplace ha- rassment and discrimination lawsuits moving forward.
Since launching Shegerian & Associates, Carney Shegerian has developed a reputation as The People’s Attorney — ghting passionately for the rights of his employee clients. As an experienced trial attorney, he has tried numerous jury trials to verdict. Winner of the 2013 Trial Lawyer of the Year Award as a result of trying a number of signi cant cases, Shegerian was also nominated, and a nalist, for the award in 2006, 2010-2012. His record of success for his clients is unparalleled. Shegerian has won over 77 jury trials, including 34 seven- gure verdicts as a plaintiff’s attorney.
ATTORNEY AT LAW MAGAZINE · LOS ANGELES · VOL. 5 NO. 3 8