Shaffer v. American Medical Association

Dist. Ct. erred in granting defendant-employer's motion for summary judgment in plaintiff's FMLA action alleging that defendant terminated him in retaliation for requesting FMLA leave. While defendant contended that operational needs motivated plaintiff's termination, record contained sufficient evidence to create triable issue with respect to reason for plaintiff's termination where: (1) defendant's management had originally identified another co-worker for termination, but then selected plaintiff shortly after he announced intention to take FMLA leave; (2) member of defendant's management backdated memorandum to make it appear that termination decision was not influenced by leave request; and (3) defendant gave inconsistent explanation regarding plaintiff's job performance as factor in termination decision.