May 22, 2012

Cat’s Paw Liability: The Impact of Staub v. Proctor Hospital

Robert C. Rives, IV
Dinsmore & Shohl LLP
Friday, December 16, 2011
Labor & Employment
All Federal
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The risk of employer liability for being tricked into taking an adverse employment action against an employee by a supervisor with discriminatory motives, i.e. cat’s paw liability, is real. On the heels of the U.S. Supreme Court’s March, 2011 decision in Staub v. Proctor Hospital, a number of lower courts have taken up the issue and found a basis for cat’s paw liability pursuant to various statutes. Additionally, since many states’ courts simply follow federal law when interpreting state civil rights laws, the cat’s paw legal theory is likely to find its way to purely state law cases as well as administrative agency investigations. This expansion of cat’s paw liability risk may require an expansion of HR compliance.

© 2012 Dinsmore & Shohl LLP. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Robert C. Rives, IV
Of Counsel

Bobby Rives is a member of the Labor and Employment Department. Prior to joining the firm, Bobby practiced in the Louisville office of Boehl, Stopher & Graves, LLP.  

robert.rives@dinsmore.com
502-540-2329
www.dinsmore.com

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