Tis The Season Of Giving, Right?

We all think of December as the season of giving. Unfortunately, prevailing defendants in Title VII cases don't always feel that way. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, prevailing plaintiffs enjoy compensatory damages, prejudgment interest, injunctive relief, and in some cases, even punitive damages when the discrimination is intentional. Additionally, attorneys' fees are available to the prevailing plaintiff. Nothing brings home the potential downside of litigating a Title VII case like an award of attorneys' fees, especially when the compensatory award isn't sizeable.

The impact of this element of damages became very clear to me when I lost my first employment case more than 20 years ago. The CEO of one of my clients instructed his company's comptroller to terminate the plaintiff, a pregnant female. In giving the instruction, he said, "She has always been a worthless employee. Now that she is pregnant, it can only get worse." The female comptroller carried out the instructions and terminated the pregnant female employee. Later...