Colorado Employment Law Blog

Faragher-Ellerth Defense Alive and Well in Tenth Circuit

By Kerri J. Atencio

Companies cringe when they receive that dreaded charge of discrimination claiming one of their managers sexually harassed an employee.  But all is not lost if the company has an anti-harassment policy which the employee failed to take advantage of to report the offensive behavior.  In that case, the company may have what’s known as the “Faragher-Ellerth” defense.  In a recent Tenth Circuit decision, an employer dodged a potentially expensive bullet by prevailing on its Faragher-Ellerth defense.

High Court to Decide Title VII Anti-Retaliation Issue

On January 18, 2008, the United States Supreme Court announced that it will review the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision in Crawford v. Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davison County Tennessee. The Supreme Court will determine whether an employee who cooperates and participates in an employer’s internal investigation of sexual harassment allegations, but fails to file a charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”), is nevertheless protected from retaliation under Title VII.