I have now been in private practice for the three most enjoyable years of my professional career! During that time, I have worked on a dizzying array of appellate issues, collaborated with many of you on critical trial court filings, consulted with half a dozen nonprofit organizations on their litigation programs, and handled several civil rights cases. None of this would have been possible without the trust that so many of you have placed in me. 

Recent highlights ...  Since sending out the last edition of my newsletter, I have secured a reversal from the D.C. Court of Appeals on a complex attorney-fee question; briefed a family law appeal in that same court; consulted on an Establishment Clause case in the U.S. Supreme Court; litigated and settled an Equal Pay Act case in the Tenth Circuit and a disability-rights claim in Maryland; briefed several dispositive motions in D.C. Superior Court; and negotiated a substantial settlement against a multinational corporation on behalf of a sexual-harassment survivor.

This edition of my newsletter ... addresses whether the EEOC can continue a sexual harassment investigation after the complainant has withdrawn the charge or proceeded to court. The "practice" column will liberate you from a rule you learned in third grade.

I look forward to hearing from you if you need appellate counsel, want help with an important trial court filing, or work for a nonprofit organization that could benefit from the services of a seasoned litigator. Meanwhile, I hope your 2020 is off to a great start!

Ayesha

 
IN BRIEF: 
On Law & Practice
Winter 2020

Ayesha N. Khan · [email protected] · 202.836.7136


LAW:
CAN THE E.E.O.C. CONTINUE AN INVESTIGATION
AFTER A  COMPLAINT HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN, SETTLED, OR DISMISSED?
 
Bill Cosby won't be remembered for his portrayal of Cliff Huxtable; he'll make it into the history books for having given Quaaludes to women before raping them. Harvey Weinstein's status as a Hollywood titan will be a footnote to his penchant for inviting women to his hotel room and answering the door in the nude. Matt Lauer's groundbreaking interviews will be forever overshadowed by the entrapment button on his desk.
 
These serial abusers did not act in a vacuum. Often their abuse was enabled by employers who chose to settle accusations with financial payouts that obligated women to stay silent about their abuse and to withdraw any pending EEOC charges. (As most of you know, the EEOC is the federal agency tasked with investigating employment discrimination. Most federal anti-discrimination statutes, including Title VII, require an aggrieved an employee to file a charge of discrimination with the EEOC or an analogous state or local entity before filing suit.)
 
But can employers rest assured that the EEOC will necessarily drop an investigation upon request? What have appellate courts said about whether the EEOC can continue investigating when the perpetrator may have targeted other victims? Click here to find out....


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PRACTICE:
BUT, BUT, BUT...
 
Despite what you may have learned in third grade, you not only can, but should, begin some of your sentences with a conjunction! Expert writers begin 10-20% of their sentences that way. So go wild:
 
Instead of however, try but or yet.
In place of additionally, moreover, and furthermore, try a simple and.
Replace accordingly, therefore, and consequently with so.
 
Nor is there any problem with starting a sentence with or, for, or nor (as I did this one).
 
Please don't send me any hate mail about this, at least not before consulting the New Yorker, the New York Times, the Washington Post, Chaucer, the Bible, and the U.S. Constitution, which begins about ten sentences with "But."

AYESHA N. KHAN [email protected]
(202) 836-7136
Ayesha was formerly a Deputy Chief in the Appellate Section of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and, prior to that, the Legal Director of a civil rights organization. She has represented a party or  amicus curiae in dozens of U.S. Supreme Court cases, over a hundred federal and state appeals, and scores of trial-level matters.

As a PLG Partner, she handles appeals in state and federal courts, briefs and argues critical motions at the trial level, consults to nonprofit organizations on their litigation programs, and litigates civil rights cases. You can read more about her  here .
This newsletter includes general information; it is not intended to provide legal advice. 
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