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Subordinate Bias Liability: The 'Cat's Paw' Doctrine

By Debra L. Raskin and Jamie Ostrow
May 31, 2007

Everyone knows that a manager who expresses discriminatory views and then fires or disciplines an employee belonging to the disfavored group may create a claim against the employer. But what happens when an unbiased manager relies on the recommendation of another supervisor who, unbeknownst to the decision maker, is a raging bigot?

Many courts have recognized claims under Title VII for subordinate bias based on 'cat's paw' or 'rubber stamp' theories of liability. The 'cat's paw' doctrine refers to the situation in which a biased subordinate, who does not have the ability to make a hiring or firing decision, is able to use the actual decision maker to trigger a negative employment action. Under the 'rubber stamp' theory, the formal decision maker mechanically consents to the discriminatory employment action at the behest of the biased subordinate. See Llampallas v. Mini-Circuits, Lab, Inc., 163 F.3d 1236, 1249 (11th Cir. 1998); Hill v. Lockheed Martin Logistics Mgmt., Inc., 354 F.3d 277, 288 (4th Cir. 2004) (en banc).

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