Firm Secures Mid-Trial Dismissal on Behalf of Universal Remote Control, Inc.
April, 2024 - New York, New York
On February 28, 2024, Patterson Belknap successfully secured a dismissal in an employment discrimination and retaliation suit on behalf of their client Universal Remote Control, Inc., a large home automation company, and two individual defendants. After a day-long cross-examination, the plaintiff agreed to dismiss all of her claims against the company and the individual defendants represented by the firm.
The plaintiff, a former employee of the corporate defendant, sued in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleging a discriminatory hostile work environment and subsequent retaliatory termination, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the New York State Human Rights Law. Prior to trial, the firm secured dismissal on summary judgment of a claim that an individual defendant retaliated against her by suing her for defamation in state court, after the Hon. Vincent L. Briccetti ruled that the state court action—prosecuted by the law firm of Cuddy & Feder LLP—was legally and factually sound and accordingly constituted protected activity.
The plaintiff had sought over $10 million in compensatory and punitive damages, plus attorney's fees. At the close of her cross-examination as the first witness, she decided to dismiss the case with prejudice, in exchange for dismissal of the defamation lawsuit. The mutual dismissal was without costs or fees to either side.
The Patterson Belknap team was led by Rachel B. Sherman and included Gregory L. Diskant, Hannah M. Brudney, Ryan J. Kurtz, and Jonah Wacholder.
