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Does the Reasonable Woman Exist and Does She Have Any Place in Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment Claims Under Title VII After Harris

NCJ Number
156870
Journal
Florida Law Review Volume: 46 Issue: 2 Dated: (April 1995) Pages: 291-322
Author(s)
L L Bernardin
Date Published
1995
Length
32 pages
Annotation
The sexual harassment claim provided by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 has evolved fairly recently and continues to be defined in the Federal court system.
Abstract
Many of the requirements necessary to prove a claim of sexual harassment, and specifically hostile environment harassment, are the subject of controversy among the courts and legal commentators. This article addresses the viability and advisability of adopting the reasonable woman standard of review following the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Harris v. Forklift Systems, which held that a victim need not demonstrate an injury to recover for sexual harassment in a hostile environment claim. The article discusses the history of sexual harassment and the hostile environment claim, the history of the reasonable woman standard, generally accepted gender-based distinctions, the goals of Title VII, and the effect of the abrogation of the injury requirement on judicial acceptance of the reasonable woman standard. The author concludes that this standard, if adopted universally by the courts, would not punish members of one group for petty insensitivity to members of another group, but would serve to align the understanding of those two groups in order to promote equality within the workplace. 226 notes

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