Supreme Court Finds Disparate Impact Claims Viable Under ADEA, But Employers Can Escape Liability Where Their Actions Are “Reasonable”

In a March 30, 2005 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Smith v. City of Jackson, 03-1160, that disparate impact claims are viable under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), but that an employer’s burden to defeat such a claim is less onerous than under Title VII. The Court voted 5-3 (Chief Justice Rehnquist not participating) on the disparate impact issue. The Court held unanimously, however, that under the facts of the case, the plaintiffs’ disparate impact claim failed.