James
04-13-2008, 03:38 PM
Plaintiff wins round in transgender case | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle (http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/biz/5685559.html)
She says she didn't get the job because she was born male.
The company says it wasn't that, claiming she misrepresented herself.
In a letter rescinding the job, the employer complained she presented herself as a woman at her interview, but the background check revealed she was a man.
And the judge said that despite requests to end the case now, this closely watched lawsuit will go forward to mediation and, if necessary, to a jury.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas, in a 31-page opinion, refused to dismiss the case of 27-year-old Izza Lopez. Born Raul Jr., Lopez claims the Houston radiology chain River Oaks Imaging and Diagnostic wrongfully pulled its 2005 offer to employ her as an appointment scheduler.
River Oaks Imaging said in legal papers that it is just following its policy of refusing to hire people whose background checks reveal they misrepresented themselves to get hired.The judge said if a jury gets the case, it will have to decide whether the company was just following policy on interview misrepresentations and made a decision without regard to Lopez's sex or whether Lopez's gender nonconformance actually motivated the company.
Atlas noted that Lopez put both her male given name and female adopted name on her River Oaks Imaging employment application papers and her background check papers. The judge also said a River Oaks Imaging employee knew Lopez was a transgender female.
Sara Benson, a visiting professor at the University of Illinois College of Law who writes on sexual orientation legal issues, said it is a victory for Lopez that she got the case to proceed to trial.
"This opinion creates something people can cite. It can be used to persuade," she said, even though a Houston trial court does not rule other federal courts.
She said it's relatively rare in an employment discrimination case for a judge to find there might be direct evidence of discrimination, as with the letter in this case.Lopez, who works with medical records, said this week that she's grateful the judge is letting the case go forward.
"I'm happy the judge's order recognizes the strength of my claim," she said.
She said she doesn't see herself as someone who wants to be in a public fight, but she felt the injustice was too much to let pass.
"I never wanted any of this. Somehow it found me," she said.
"I hope that everything I'm doing eventually is advantageous for some other transgender person. I hope I am not doing it in vain," said Lopez, who has legally changed her first name from Raul to Izabella.Here's to hoping she wins! :jump:
She says she didn't get the job because she was born male.
The company says it wasn't that, claiming she misrepresented herself.
In a letter rescinding the job, the employer complained she presented herself as a woman at her interview, but the background check revealed she was a man.
And the judge said that despite requests to end the case now, this closely watched lawsuit will go forward to mediation and, if necessary, to a jury.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas, in a 31-page opinion, refused to dismiss the case of 27-year-old Izza Lopez. Born Raul Jr., Lopez claims the Houston radiology chain River Oaks Imaging and Diagnostic wrongfully pulled its 2005 offer to employ her as an appointment scheduler.
River Oaks Imaging said in legal papers that it is just following its policy of refusing to hire people whose background checks reveal they misrepresented themselves to get hired.The judge said if a jury gets the case, it will have to decide whether the company was just following policy on interview misrepresentations and made a decision without regard to Lopez's sex or whether Lopez's gender nonconformance actually motivated the company.
Atlas noted that Lopez put both her male given name and female adopted name on her River Oaks Imaging employment application papers and her background check papers. The judge also said a River Oaks Imaging employee knew Lopez was a transgender female.
Sara Benson, a visiting professor at the University of Illinois College of Law who writes on sexual orientation legal issues, said it is a victory for Lopez that she got the case to proceed to trial.
"This opinion creates something people can cite. It can be used to persuade," she said, even though a Houston trial court does not rule other federal courts.
She said it's relatively rare in an employment discrimination case for a judge to find there might be direct evidence of discrimination, as with the letter in this case.Lopez, who works with medical records, said this week that she's grateful the judge is letting the case go forward.
"I'm happy the judge's order recognizes the strength of my claim," she said.
She said she doesn't see herself as someone who wants to be in a public fight, but she felt the injustice was too much to let pass.
"I never wanted any of this. Somehow it found me," she said.
"I hope that everything I'm doing eventually is advantageous for some other transgender person. I hope I am not doing it in vain," said Lopez, who has legally changed her first name from Raul to Izabella.Here's to hoping she wins! :jump: