Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services is a pending United States Supreme Court case about whether a claim of reverse discrimination requires a showing of additional "background circumstances" supporting a suspicion that the employer discriminates against the majority group.
| Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Full case name | Marlean A. Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services |
| Docket no. | 23-1039 |
| Case history | |
| Prior | Case dismissed, Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services, No. 2:20-cv-05935 (S.D. Ohio March 16, 2023). Affirmed, 87 F.4th 822 (6th Cir. 2023). |
| Questions presented | |
| Whether, in addition to pleading the other elements of Title VII, a majority-group plaintiff must show "background circumstances to support the suspicion that the defendant is that unusual employer who discriminates against the majority." | |
Background
editThe case was brought by Marlean Ames, a straight woman who alleged that the Ohio Department of Youth Services discriminated against her on the basis of sexual orientation in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.[1] She had worked in the department since 2004. In 2017, Ames was reassigned to a new supervisor, who was a lesbian woman. In 2019, she applied for a promotion to be bureau chief of quality. Her application was rejected, and she was demoted from her position as administrator shortly afterwards. The promotion was given instead to a lesbian co-worker, and the administrator position was given to a 25-year old gay man.[2]
Ames sued in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. The district court dismissed the case. The Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal, applying its "background circumstances" test, under which Ames had to show either statistical evidence that her employer discriminated against the majority group or evidence that the employment decision was made by the minority group. Judge Kethledge concurred in the majority opinion based on the Sixth Circuit's prior precedents recognizing the background circumstances test, but criticized the test and called for the Supreme Court to review the question. He noted that there was a circuit split, saying that five federal court of appeal circuits apply the test, seven do not, and two of those had expressly rejected it.[2]
Supreme Court
editOn October 4, 2024, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b Hoover, Jimmy (October 4, 2024). "Justices Will Consider Straight Woman's Reverse Discrimination Case Against Ohio". Law.com.
- ^ a b Flagg, Lyndsay; Primm, Adam (December 27, 2023). "Sixth Circuit Requires Additional "Background Circumstances" Evidence for Heterosexual Plaintiffs Seeking to Prove Reverse Sexual Orientation Discrimination". JD Supra.