Employment Law

Pick a case—a recently decided case on an issue of employment discrimination (within the last two years). The case can come from a federal or state administrative agency charged with adjudicating employment discrimination claims or from any federal or state court. It simply must be recent—decided within the last two years.

After you have selected your Case Study Subject:

Summarize the facts of the case;
Summarize the legal claims made by the party who brought the case;
Summarize any legal defenses raised by the defendant;
Summarize the legal proceedings. In other words, provide a road map for the steps that took place in this case, including any pending legal challenges to the original decision you have selected. For example, if a state trial court found in favor of an employee on a claim of discrimination, but the employer has filed an appeal, you must include that in your procedural summary.
The goal of your summary should be to provide the reader with enough information to understand the claims, the approach taken by both plaintiff and defense attorneys, and the relevant portions of the evidence introduced at trial and on appeal.

Based on the facts, testimony, and evidence presented:

Describe any circumstances that you believe were critical to the ultimate decision of the adjudicative body, supporting your position with reference to the course textbook, other course readings, or outside research. In other words, legal standards not opinion should support this point.
Were there additional factors that you believe mitigated against the ultimate outcome? If so, please explain them.
And finally, do you agree with outcome of the case and why.

Formatting

Your case study should be between six (5) and eight (7) pages long, double-spaced with one-inch margins all around and using a 12-point Times New Roman or equivalent typeface. Include page numbers at the bottom of each page. The required Works Cited Page is not part of the six (6) to eight (8) pages. A Cover Page is not required; however, if you use a Cover Page, that page is also not part of the minimum page requirement.

Appropriate citation is required for all reference material listed in your Works Cited. In-text or embedded citations are required for all statements/propositions that are not your own. Whether the statement/proposition is an exact quotation, or paraphrased from source material, if the statement is not original to you, an in-text or embedded citation is necessary.

University level writing is required; therefore, papers should be complete, professional, contain appropriate grammar and syntax, and convey a formal, as opposed to conversational, tone as is common in short, research-based assignments. That being said, students should seek to avoid the following common problems.

Pitfalls to Avoid

Failing to provide context for your reader (do not assume your reader knows the case history).
Failing to proofread.
Over relying on spellcheck and grammar check.
Failing to provide in-text citations that are sufficient to alert the reader to your source—do not make the reader guess which sentences in your paper relate to which source in your Works Cited page.
Using first person personal pronouns (I/We), which are only appropriate at the very end of the paper.
Using colloquialisms or clichés (informal language).
Submitting the paper in the wrong format.
Ignoring the basic instructions.
Leaving the assignment until the last minute.