The Supreme Court is taking up the case of an Ohio woman who claims she suffered sex discrimination in her employment because she is straight.
The justices on Friday agreed to review an appellate ruling that upheld the dismissal of the discrimination lawsuit filed by the woman, Marlean Ames, against the Ohio Department of Youth Services. Arguments probably will take place early next year.
Ames, who has worked for the department for 20 years, contends she was passed over for a promotion and then demoted because she is heterosexual. Both the job she sought and the one she had held were given to LGBTQ people.
Key detail:
The question for the justices is that the 6th Circuit and several other appeals courts apply a higher standard when members of a majority group make discrimination claims.
So the SCOTUS won’t be deciding whether she was discriminated against, they will be deciding how courts should decide whether she was discriminated against.
That’s what they do. They’re an appeals court, they don’t decide on facts of the case.
Exactly. People forget this about our appellate courts too often. For every can they hear there will be much more lower trial courts hear and will try and relate to the higher court’s case. An appellate court trying to solve every case in front of them in the most fair way ensures more cases will end unfairly.
