In Laguerre v. Maurice, 2020 WL 7636435, 2020 N.Y. App. LEXIS 8011, 2020 NY Slip Op 07887 (2nd Dept., Dec. 23, 2020), a panel of the N.Y. Appellate Division, 2nd Department, abandoned a departmental precedent dating from 1984, Matherson v. Marchello, 100 App. Div. 2d 233, finding that today a false statement that the plaintiff was a homosexual who watched gay porn on his employer’s computer is not defamatory per se… <Read More>
2nd Department
Obscure Brooklyn Appellate Ruling Protects Transgender People from Discrimination Without Saying So
Talk about “hiding the ball!” On June 6, a unanimous four-judge panel of the New York Appellate Division, 2nd Department, based in Brooklyn, confirmed an Order by the State Division of Human Rights (SDHR), which had adopted a decision by an agency administrative law judge (ALJ) ruling that a Port Jervis employer violated the human rights law when it discharged a transgender employee.
But nobody reading the court’s short memorandum opinion, or the short … <Read More>
New York Appeals Court Allows Breach of Contract Claim on Alleged Joint/Venture Partnership Agreement of Lesbian Couple
A panel of the New York Appellate Division, 2nd Department, in Brooklyn, ruled on November 13 that a lesbian can sue her former same-sex partner for breach of an alleged contract that they would share assets equally, including retirement contributions and earnings, after their relationship ended. While agreeing with the trial judge, Kings County Supreme Court Justice Yvonne Lewis, that plaintiff Laura Dee could not pursue an equitable claim on theories of constructive trust, unjust … <Read More>