Tenth Circuit Provides Guidance on Issue of Who Qualifies as a Supervisor for Purposes of Title VII Harassment Claims
On February 25, 2012 the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals (the federal appeals court with jurisdiction over the federal district court in Utah) issued a very important decision applicable to Title VII harassment claims. In Kramer v. Wasatch County , No. 12-4058, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the Utah District Court's decision granting summary judgment on Ms. Kramer's Title VII sexual harassment claim against Wasatch County. In rendering its decision, the Tenth Court addressed in detail for the first time the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Vance v. Ball State Univ. , 133 S.Ct. 2423 (2013). In Vance , the U.S. Supreme Court held that a “supervisor” under Title VII is an employee whom “the employer has empowered . . . to take tangible employment actions against the victim, i.e., to effect a ‘significant change in employment status, such as hiring, firing, failing to promote, reassignment with significantly different responsibilities, or a decisi...