Shapiro v. Adams

Background

Norman Shapiro asserted claims against Mayor Eric Adams and the City of New York, including a claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The court had previously indicated that the Title VII claim was premature. Shapiro had asked the court to pause the case while the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reviewed his matter.

Reason for the Ruling

At a conference on September 21, 2022, Shapiro reported that he had not received a right-to-sue letter from the EEOC. The court stated that this letter is a statutory prerequisite to bringing a Title VII lawsuit, meaning that the claim could not proceed in its current form before that administrative step was completed.

Disposition

The court dismissed Shapiro’s Title VII claim without prejudice to refiling it in a separate case at the appropriate time. The court stated that the case would proceed on the remaining claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act and state law. Because the court did not resolve the merits of those remaining claims, no ruling on their validity was made in this order.

Further Case Schedule

The court understood that Shapiro was considering amending his operative complaint and that the defendants intended to file a motion to dismiss the amended pleading for failure to state a claim. If Shapiro amended, the court required him to do so by November 7, 2022. The defendants’ motion to dismiss would be due December 7, 2022; Shapiro’s opposition would be due January 16, 2023; and the defendants’ reply would be due January 30, 2023.

The court also ordered the defendants to provide Shapiro copies of all authorities cited in their motion papers, with the parties to confer about whether to provide them electronically or in hard copy. The clerk was directed to mail the order to Shapiro’s address of record.