SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS SEXUAL HARASSMENT VERDICT

The April edition of Fortune Small Business has an interesting article on a sexual harassment case arising out of New Orleans. The plaintiff, Jennifer Arbaugh was a waitress at the Moonlight Cafe. After the owner allegedly groped her and made lewd remarks, she sued. A federal jury awarded her $40,000. The defendant appealed, and argued that the business had less than 15 employees, and therefore wasn't governed by the legislation at issue. [The article indicated that Title VII provides that companies with less than 15 employees can't be held liable for sexual harassment]. The District Court agreed, as did the Federal Appeals court. The Supreme Court however, disagreed in a February, 2006 decision. The Supreme Court held that after Moonlight had litigated the case through trial, it couldn't then take the position the claim was legally insufficient. Commentators have suggested that the defendant probably could have had the case tossed at the outset if it asserted the 15 employee provision.