Missouri Supreme Court Rules Gay and Transgender Plaintiffs Have a Claim under the Missouri Human Rights Act
A pair of cases decided by the Supreme Court of Missouri yesterday held that two plaintiffs — a gay employee and a transgender student — both stated sufficient allegations to proceed with a lawsuit under the Missouri Human Rights Act (“MHRA”).
Each of these cases was focused on the legal requirements for proceeding with...
Shands Elbert Law Firm and Lawyers Recognized In Best Lawyers and Super Lawyers
Shands, Elbert, Gianoulakis & Giljum, LLP is pleased to announce that the firm received a Tier 1 ranking in the 2019 Edition of U.S. News – Best Lawyers in America “Best Law Firms®” for Commercial Litigation, Employment Law – Management, Litigation – Labor & Employment, Litigation – Municipal, and Tax Law in the St. Louis metropolitan...
Supreme Court Holding Hurts Public Sector Unions
In Janus v. AFSCME, Council 31 et al., 585 U.S. ___ (June 27, 2018) the Supreme Court of the United States, in a 5-4 decision, overruled its 1977 precedent and held that states cannot compel non-members of Unions representing public employees to pay agency (sometimes called fair share) fees, which presumably relate...
Employers can Enforce Agreements in which Employees Waive Class Action Relief in Favor of Individualized Arbitration
This week, with a holding helpful to employers, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that clauses in employment agreements requiring individualized arbitration of employment disputes are valid and enforceable. EPIC Systems Corp. v. Lewis, No. 16-285 (U.S. May 21, 2018). This decision allows employers to obtain a valid waiver of...
Title VII Held to Prohibit Discrimination Against Gay Skydiving Instructor and Transgender Funeral Director
We previously wrote (see our post on the Hively decision, here) about the Seventh Circuit’s 2017 holding that the prohibition of sex discrimination in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”) also prohibits sexual orientation discrimination. Two new cases further support an expansive definition of “sex” under Title...
EEOC Statistics Fiscal Year 2017 – Retaliation Again is #1
It’s that time of year - on January 25, 2018, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) released its Fiscal Year 2017 statistics summarizing the data collected from its year ending September 30, 2017. The full report and access to the data tables can be found here.
The...
Bob Murray Wins Appeal In Legal Malpractice Case
Bob Murray successfully represented a St. Louis law firm in a legal malpractice case brought by that law firm’s former client, a Missouri bank. The case was based on the law firm’s alleged negligence in connection with an underlying litigation matter. A St. Louis County Circuit Court judge dismissed one count and...
John and Dora Gianoulakis chosen as Co-Chairs for LSEM Justice for All Ball
Legal Services of Eastern Missouri chose John Gianoulakis and Dora Gianoulakis to be Honorary Co-Chairs of the 28th Justice for All Ball held at Hyatt Regency at the Arch. The Justice for All Ball benefits Legal Services of Eastern Missouri and supports free quality civil (non-criminal) legal services to low-income individuals and the...
Arts and Entertainment 2017 Law Firm Campaign Challenge trophy awarded to SEGG
The Arts and Education Council (A&E) awarded its third annual Law Firm Campaign Challenge trophy to Shands, Elbert, Gianoulakis & Giljum, LLP. The award is given to a law firm that has the largest percentage increase in contributions to the A&E. John Gianoulakis, partner and former A&E Board Member, and Martha Baer,...
Harassment Training is the Right (and Necessary) Thing to Do
Sexual harassment claims currently are big news because prominent film makers, actors, television personalities, executives and United States legislators have been identified as serial harassers. Under pressure, some alleged harassers have confessed, while others have at least acknowledged that their actions were inappropriate. We may be witnessing a sea change in exposing harassers...