Heightened Causation Standard Required For Title VII Employment Retaliation Claims

Employees alleging they suffered retaliation at the hands of their employers for complaining about workplace discrimination under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act must prove that the retaliation was the “but for” cause of the adverse employment action, a divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled June 24 (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center v. Nassar, U.S., 12-484, 6/24/13).

Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, writing for the five-member majority, said that the less-burdensome “motivating factor” causation standard required for a plaintiff to prevail in an employment discrimination claim under Section 2000e-2(a) does not extend to a claim for retaliation ...