Representative Matters: Jeffrey L. Lowry

A former employee of our client, a childcare center in Albuquerque, filed a charge of discrimination against the center alleging race discrimination. Our client's managers had disciplined the employee for continued absenteeism. When the employee did not show up for work for three days after failing to call in, the childcare center determined that the employee had abandoned her job and terminated her employment. The employee alleged that she had brought in a note from her child's doctor explaining her lengthy absence. Before the client retained our law firm, the Human Rights Division had issued a "probable cause" determination. The client then hired our firm, and we tried the case to a three-member panel of New Mexico's Human Rights Commission. During the trial, we were able to demonstrate that the employee's story was full of contradictions and that the date of the note did not fit with the employee's story. At the close of the evidence, the Commission ruled from the bench, dismissing the employee's claim in its entirety.

We represented a grocery store chain in a federal court lawsuit alleging disability discrimination. The plaintiff, a former employee, alleged that her asthma and pulmonary problems were a disability that prevented her from working as a cashier. In particular, the plaintiff alleged that the following substances and circumstances could trigger an asthma attack: pollens, dust, humidity, cold air, cigarette smoke, chimney smoke, perfumes, aftershaves, cat dander, pneumonia, cleaning products, windy days, stress, heartburn, sinus infections, cold, bronchitis, sinusitis, watermelon, "chemicals," and crowds. The plaintiff had brought in doctor's note and argued that the company should have transferred her to another position to accommodate her alleged disability. We argued that the plaintiff failed to engage the company in good faith in an "interactive process" to determine what jobs she could do given her various restrictions. After a three-day trial, the jury returned a verdict for our client on all claims.