Osher Lifelong Learning Institute
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Backdating #MeToo
Speaker
Professor Jessica Fink
Coordinator
Michael Lipman
The #MeToo movement radically altered the way people think about workplace sexual harassment, yet the courts have been slow to respond to these changing views. Virtually no one has addressed how courts should treat cases that may have arisen prior to the upheaval caused by the #MeToo movement but which are being litigated in its aftermath. What should happen when a court is faced with workplace behavior that would not have constituted actionable harassment at the time that such conduct occurred, but which likely would create liability for the employer under today’s expectations? Should courts “backdate” the new norms created by the #MeToo movement? If so, what are the ramifications for women—and for society?
Speaker Bio
Presenter: Jessica Fink spent five years practicing with the Chicago firm of Sidley Austin LLP, where she litigated employment-related matters and counseled businesses regarding employment practices. Her research focuses on how traditional employment law doctrines have been complicated by developments in the modern workplace. She is a professor at California Western Law school and was named the Clara Shortridge Foltz Professor of Law in 2018. She received her law degree from Harvard Law School.
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