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Employment Rulings in the Ninth Circuit

The Ninth Circuit covers the federal courts in Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands. The rulings below come from the circuit's court of appeals and the federal trial courts within it.

Of the 5,351 published rulings we track here (19672026), the breakdowns below show how they were decided. They describe published opinions only — not the odds of any particular situation.

How These Rulings Ended

Of the 5,351 published rulings we track in the Ninth Circuit.

Defendant Win
1,800 (34%)
Dismissed
1,160 (22%)
Mixed Result
911 (17%)
Plaintiff Win
723 (14%)
Remanded
518 (10%)
Settlement
239 (4%)

What Happens at Each Stage

A workplace lawsuit moves through stages, and a ruling can end it at any of them. Here is where the 5,218 rulings we could classify by stage were decided.

Appeal
2,095 (40%)

A higher court reviewing an earlier decision. Many published opinions come from this stage, after a lot has already happened in the case.

Summary judgment
639 (12%)

A ruling where the judge decides the case — or part of it — without a trial, because one side argues the key facts are not in dispute. For workers, getting past this step is often the biggest hurdle.

Of the 639 summary-judgment rulings here, 379 ended the case in the employer’s favor and 259 let the worker’s claims continue; the rest resolved in other ways.

Motion to dismiss
2,007 (38%)

An early request — usually by the employer — to throw the case out before any evidence is gathered.

Trial verdict
83 (2%)

A judge or jury heard the evidence and reached a decision. Relatively few disputes get this far.

Settlement / consent decree
217 (4%)

The two sides resolved the dispute by agreement, sometimes with court approval. Most settlements are private and never show up in published opinions.

Default judgment
95 (2%)

A decision entered because one side did not respond to the case at all.

Other rulings
82 (2%)

Procedural decisions and orders that do not fit the main stages above.

States in This Circuit

Browse rulings from courts in each state the Ninth Circuit covers.

Recent Rulings in the Ninth Circuit

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Maricopa County

Jun 18, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Maricopa County

Jun 18, 20099th CircuitMixed Result

Elvik

Jun 16, 20099th CircuitRemanded

Velikanov

Jun 15, 2009C.D. Cal.Plaintiff Win

In re First American Corp. Erisa Litigation

Jun 10, 2009C.D. Cal.Defendant Win

Opal Harger v. Department of Labor

Jun 10, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Chudner

Jun 8, 2009D. Or.Defendant Win

Nelson v. National Aeronautics & Space Administration

Jun 4, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Nelson v. Nasa

Jun 4, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Frontline Medical Associates, Inc. v. Coventry Healthcare Workers Compensation, Inc.

Jun 3, 2009C.D. Cal.Defendant Win

Ayala-Quezada

May 26, 20099th CircuitDismissed

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Aaron Bros.

May 22, 2009C.D. Cal.Plaintiff Win

National Labor Relations Board v. JLL Restaurant, Inc.

May 12, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

National Labor Relations Board v. JLL Restaurant, Inc.

May 12, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Labor/Community Strategy Center v. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority

May 5, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

labor/community

May 5, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Howard S. Wright Construction Co. v. Laborers International Union of North America, Local Union No. 169

Apr 30, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Howard S. Wright Construction Co. v. Laborers International Union of North America, Local Union No. 169

Apr 30, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Reese

Apr 23, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Reese

Apr 23, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. American Apparel, Inc.

Apr 22, 20099th CircuitRemanded

United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. American Apparel, Inc.

Apr 22, 20099th CircuitRemanded

Weaver

Apr 22, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Weaver

Apr 22, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

In Re Touch America Holdings Inc. Erisa Litigation

Apr 22, 20099th CircuitDismissed

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 21 v. National Labor Relations Board

Apr 20, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Cyntegra, Inc. v. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.

Apr 20, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Laborers International Union of North America, Local 872 v. National Labor Relations Board

Apr 20, 20099th CircuitRemanded

Laborers International Union of North America, Local 872 v. National Labor Relations Board

Apr 20, 20099th CircuitRemanded

Cyntegra, Inc. v. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.

Apr 20, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Aaron McKnight v. Adam Torres

Apr 20, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

International Brothe v. NLRB

Apr 20, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Chudacoff

Apr 14, 2009D. Nev.Mixed Result

LaPeter

Apr 8, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Boeing Co.

Apr 8, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Boeing Co.

Apr 8, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

NORELLI

Apr 7, 2009E.D. Cal.Plaintiff Win

Houston v. Governing Board of the Encinitas Union School District

Apr 6, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Houston v. Governing Board of the Encinitas Union School District

Apr 6, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

Apr 1, 2009D. IdahoMixed Result

United Steel, Paper & Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial & Service Workers International Union v. National Labor Relations Board

Apr 1, 20099th CircuitMixed Result

United Steel, Paper & Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial & Service Workers International Union v. National Labor Relations Board

Apr 1, 20099th CircuitMixed Result

Ollier

Mar 30, 2009S.D. Cal.Plaintiff Win

Irvin

Mar 27, 20099th CircuitMixed Result

Irvin

Mar 27, 20099th CircuitMixed Result

Estrada

Mar 26, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Alexander Manufacturing, Inc. Employee Stock Ownership Plan & Trust v. Illinois Union Insurance

Mar 25, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Dillingham Ship Repair v. United States Department of Labor

Mar 25, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Dillingham Ship Repair v. United States Department of Labor

Mar 25, 20099th CircuitDefendant Win

Iuic

Mar 25, 20099th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Showing 4,5014,550 of 5,351 rulings · Page 91 of 108

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These figures summarize publicly available published court opinions only. Published opinions over-represent summary-judgment rulings (decisions made without a trial) and appeals, because those are the stages where judges most often write formal opinions. Most workplace disputes settle privately and never appear here at all. A ruling’s outcome reflects many case-specific factors and is not a prediction for any other situation. Read more about how we source and classify rulings.

Data sourced from public federal court records via CourtListener.com. Case outcomes extracted using AI analysis. This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The classification of outcomes and case stages is based on automated analysis and may not reflect the full scope of each case.