I&D Enforcement Tightens amid Court Rulings

Amid shifting enforcement priorities, federal courts continue to respond to the Supreme Court’s April 2024 decision in Muldrow v. City of St. Louis, which lowered the standard for proving Title VII employment discrimination. Plaintiffs now need only show “some harm” to a term or condition of employment — rather than significant disadvantage — to proceed. Courts are increasingly applying Muldrow beyond Title VII to other employment decisions and equal employment opportunity laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

In Scheer v. Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Health System Inc., the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals revived a claim involving a mandatory employee assistance program that the plaintiff argued violated the ADA. The case had been dismissed for lack of significant harm, but in its June 21 decision, the court held that Muldrow “rejected the significance test” and “compels reconsideration” of the claim. The EEOC supported the plaintiff, joining the case as amicus and participating in oral argument.