Dallas Employment Lawyer Discusses Retaliation Cases
// Dallas, Texas, United States // Attorney Keith Clouse (Blog) // Keith Clouse
Dallas employment lawyer Keith Clouse notes that, in many situations, a plaintiff’s retaliation claim is much stronger than the plaintiff’s underlying discrimination claim. Here, he discusses the burden of proof each party must meet in a retaliation case.
To prevail on a retaliation claim, a plaintiff must first establish a “prima facie case.” To do so, she must show that: • She engaged in a protected activity (For example, she complained about her boss’s discriminatory treatment to the human resources department.); • An adverse employment action occurred (Most commonly, a plaintiff establishes that she was fired.); and • A causal link exists between the protected activity and the adverse employment action (The plaintiff may show that she was fired shortly after she complained about the alleged discrimination.).
If the plaintiff establishes her prima facie case, the burden of proof shifts to the employer who must state a legitimate non-retaliatory reason for the employment action. For instance, the employer could show that it fired the employee for performance issues or for misconduct. If the employer establishes a legitimate non-retaliatory reason for the employment action, the burden shifts back to the plaintiff to show that the employer’s stated reason is actually a pretext for unlawful retaliation.
To discuss a discrimination matter with an employment law attorney, contact an employment lawyer in your area. This article is presented by the Dallas employment lawyers at Clouse Dunn LLP. For inquiries, send an email to debra@clousedunn.com or call (214) 239-2705.
Contact Keith Clouse
KEITH A. CLOUSE
Clouse Dunn LLP
214.220.2722 214.220.3833 ( fax) keith@clousedunn.com
