National Sex Discrimination Case Against Wal-Mart to stay in California - Judge Rejects Wal-Mart Attempt to Dismiss Case or Transfer it to Arkansas December 7, 2001 The nationwide class action sex discrimination lawsuit filed against Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. will stay in California, federal Judge Martin Jenkins ruled late on December 3 in San Francisco. The suit, filed last June by current and former Wal-Mart and Sam's Club female employees, charges that Wal-Mart discriminates against women in its stores throughout the United States by denying them promotions, equal pay, favorable job assignments and training. The suit was filed by lead plaintiff Betty Dukes, who works at Wal-Mart's Pittsburgh, CA store, Patricia Surgeson, who worked at Wal-Mart's Vacaville, CA store, and four other women, who worked in stores in Texas, Florida, Illinois and Ohio. The women cited statistics that show that although women hold more than 70% of store hourly positions, they hold less than 10% of store manager positions, and that Wal-Mart lags far behind its main competitors in promotion of women. Wal-Mart sought to dismiss the entire action, or have it transferred to the federal court in the western district of Arkansas-where its home offices are located (Bentonville). Wal-Mart argued that because four of the plaintiffs were not from California, the federal court in San Francisco was not a proper venue for the action. It urged outright dismissal of the entire case, or transfer to Arkansas, where it claimed venue was proper. Although Judge Jenkins ruled that the non-California plaintiffs lacked proper venue in California, he rejected Wal-Mart's extreme proposal to throw out or transfer the entire case as "too harsh" and "not in the interests of justice". Instead, he ruled that the California plaintiffs could "litigate this action in this forum." For more information, please contact us at lawinfo@cmht.com.
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