Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

Employment Law StrategistLJN NewslettersNewsSections

Statistical Lessons of Ricci

By Jonathan Falk

The Supreme Court's decision in Ricci v. De Stefano has already garnered a great deal of attention from lawyers, political pundits, and Supreme Court watchers. While the statistical issues got almost no attention in the decision from either side, there are important statistical currents in Ricci ' as there are in any disparate impact case ' that are worthy of further attention. This two-part article focuses on three issues: 1) What do statisticians really have to say about disparate impact? 2) How might statistical analysis have played out in Ricci? and 3) Going forward, what role do statisticians have to play in the new standard (i.e., strong basis in evidence)?

To frame the discussion, it will help to lay out a few facts about the case. The City of New Haven, CT, hired a company to develop a promotional test for firefighters that would accomplish two objectives: test only skills relevant for promotion and, subject to that, minimize potential disparate impact of the results. It should be noted that under the precedent provided in Griggs v. Duke Power, 401 U.S. 424 (1971), any procedure that accomplishes the first task has a safe harbor against allegations of disparate impact, albeit a safe harbor that might well have been challenged in court on the facts.

This premium content is locked for Entertainment Law & Finance subscribers only

  • Stay current on the latest information, rulings, regulations, and trends
  • Includes practical, must-have information on copyrights, royalties, AI, and more
  • Tap into expert guidance from top entertainment lawyers and experts

For enterprise-wide or corporate acess, please contact Customer Service at [email protected] or 877-256-2473

Read These Next
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough Image

There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.

Judge Rules Shaquille O'Neal Will Face Securities Lawsuit for Promotion, Sale of NFTs Image

A federal district court in Miami, FL, has ruled that former National Basketball Association star Shaquille O'Neal will have to face a lawsuit over his promotion of unregistered securities in the form of cryptocurrency tokens and that he was a "seller" of these unregistered securities.

Why So Many Great Lawyers Stink at Business Development and What Law Firms Are Doing About It Image

Why is it that those who are best skilled at advocating for others are ill-equipped at advocating for their own skills and what to do about it?

Blockchain Domains: New Developments for Brand Owners Image

Blockchain domain names offer decentralized alternatives to traditional DNS-based domain names, promising enhanced security, privacy and censorship resistance. However, these benefits come with significant challenges, particularly for brand owners seeking to protect their trademarks in these new digital spaces.

Coverage Issues Stemming from Dry Cleaner Contamination Suits Image

In recent years, there has been a growing number of dry cleaners claiming to be "organic," "green," or "eco-friendly." While that may be true with respect to some, many dry cleaners continue to use a cleaning method involving the use of a solvent called perchloroethylene, commonly known as perc. And, there seems to be an increasing number of lawsuits stemming from environmental problems associated with historic dry cleaning operations utilizing this chemical.