Cleary Gottlieb Beats Contract Attorney’s Race Bias Claim

A black lawyer failed to show international law firm Cleary Gottlieb’s District of Columbia office fired him because of his race, a federal judge decided (Silva v. Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, 2017 BL 175194, D.D.C., No. 14-2192, 5/25/17).

The ruling is a reminder that not every statement an employer makes during the course of litigation about its reasons for firing an employee is grounds for doubting an earlier explanation by the employer.

Evidence presented by Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP that it viewed Lyle Silva’s job performance as below par in some ways didn’t undermine ...