People are living longer and healthier lives then ever before. Due to this longer life span people are also working past the normal retirement age 65 years of age. If a person is physically and mentally able to work should they be forced to retire because their corporation’s mandatory retirement policy? According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) they disagreed with the Sidley Austin Brown & Wood law firm currently know as Sidley Austin LLP after the merger.
The legal issue addressed in this lawsuit is age discrimination. Under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) the ADEA prohibits employment discrimination against persons 40 years of age or older. No such employee benefit plan shall require or permit involuntary retirement of any individual because of their age. Under this act it is also unlawful to deny benefits to older employees. The employer may however reduce benefits based on age only if the cost of providing the reduced benefits to older workers is the same as the cost of providing full benefits to younger workers. Since 1978 ADEA has prohibited mandatory retirement in most sectors, with phased elimination of mandatory retirement for tenured workers, such as college professors, in 1993. The suit challenged the law firms decision to demote or terminate former partners due their restructuring process.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for enforcing the nation's laws prohibiting discrimination in employment based on race, color, sex (including sexual harassment and pregnancy), religion, national origin, age, disability, and retaliation. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit in Chicago ruled that the U.S. EEOC had the authorit ...