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Second Circuit Review: Gender Stereotyping Claims Under 42 USC §1983
April 28, 2004 Full PDF
The April 28 New York Law Journal "Second Circuit Review" features an article written by Martin Flumenbaum and Brad Karp titled, "Gender Stereotyping Claims Under 42 USC §1983." The article discusses the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit's recent ruling in Back v. Hastings on Hudson Union Free Sch. Dist., in which the court wrestled with "an important question, one that strikes at the persistent 'fault line between work and family - precisely where sex-based overgeneralization has been and remains strongest.'" In this decision, the court held that "stereotyping about the qualities of mothers is a form of gender discrimination" that is actionable under 42 USC §1983. The court also found that such discrimination "can be determined in the absence of evidence about how the employer in question treated fathers." As a result of this ruling, the Second Circuit vacated and remanded in large part, the decision of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, which had granted summary judgment for various defendants. Mr. Flumenbaum and Mr. Karp opine that the pragmatic impact of the case may prove to be significant. The Second Circuit has provided a clearer statement that gender discrimination claims may be brought under §1983, one that satisfies the statute's remedial purposes and empowers a wider range of potential plaintiffs. The editor notes that Timothy Martin assisted in the preparation of the article.