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Employment Rulings in the Sixth Circuit

The Sixth Circuit covers the federal courts in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. The rulings below come from the circuit's court of appeals and the federal trial courts within it.

Of the 2,531 published rulings we track here (19492026), 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 2,531 published rulings we track in the Sixth Circuit.

Defendant Win
1,124 (44%)
Plaintiff Win
460 (18%)
Mixed Result
385 (15%)
Dismissed
348 (14%)
Remanded
164 (6%)
Settlement
50 (2%)

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 2,489 rulings we could classify by stage were decided.

Appeal
1,205 (48%)

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
484 (19%)

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 484 summary-judgment rulings here, 285 ended the case in the employer’s favor and 199 let the worker’s claims continue.

Motion to dismiss
658 (26%)

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

Trial verdict
40 (2%)

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

Settlement / consent decree
46 (2%)

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
26 (1%)

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

Other rulings
30 (1%)

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

States in This Circuit

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

Recent Rulings in the Sixth Circuit

Griffin

Mar 9, 2023S.D. OhioDefendant Win

Josephson

Mar 9, 2023W.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Fisher

Mar 2, 2023N.D. OhioDefendant Win

Liebau

Mar 2, 2023E.D. Mich.Dismissed

Walsh

Feb 24, 2023E.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

Guy

Feb 21, 2023E.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

Hawn

Feb 17, 2023N.D. OhioDefendant Win

Ramsey

Feb 8, 2023E.D. Tenn.Dismissed

Williams v. Dean Transportation, Inc.

Feb 3, 2023M.D. Tenn.Plaintiff Win

Burley

Jan 31, 2023M.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Calmes

Jan 25, 2023E.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Qiu

Jan 23, 2023E.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Painting Contractor, LLC v. NLRB

Jan 20, 20236th CircuitRemanded

Hicks

Jan 19, 2023M.D. Tenn.Dismissed

Goodman, Sr. v. Valero Refining Company - Tennessee, L.L.C.

Jan 17, 2023W.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Middleton

Jan 17, 2023W.D. Ky.Defendant Win

S&J Wholesale, LLC v. Alkitchmall (Seller ID: A2S9WQ2NR9EYP3)

Jan 11, 2023E.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Foster

Jan 10, 2023M.D. Tenn.Plaintiff Win

International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America v. Honeywell International Inc.

Jan 4, 2023E.D. Mich.Mixed Result

Mathews

Jan 3, 2023W.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Hamer

Jan 3, 2023M.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Mortland

Dec 22, 2022S.D. OhioDismissed

Epps

Dec 21, 2022S.D. OhioRemanded

Trapp

Dec 21, 2022E.D. Mich.Remanded

Walters

Dec 20, 2022E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Proctor Financial, Inc.

Dec 6, 2022E.D. Mich.Mixed Result

Lassiter

Dec 1, 2022N.D. OhioMixed Result

Stocum

Nov 30, 2022N.D. OhioDismissed

Zucca

Nov 21, 2022N.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Stansberry

Nov 17, 2022S.D. OhioDefendant Win

Los

Nov 16, 2022E.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

Forester

Nov 15, 2022E.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Patrick

Nov 15, 2022S.D. OhioDefendant Win

Patrick

Nov 15, 2022S.D. OhioDefendant Win

FemHealth USA, Inc. v. Williams

Nov 9, 2022M.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Bibb

Nov 8, 2022N.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Clark v. Pizza Baker, Inc.

Oct 31, 2022S.D. OhioDefendant Win

HOLMES

Oct 28, 2022E.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Boards of Trustees of The Ohio Laborers' Fringe Benefit Programs v. S & D Traffic Control, LLC

Oct 28, 2022S.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Samons

Oct 28, 2022E.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Adams-Gillard

Oct 27, 2022W.D. Tenn.Settlement

Kluytman

Oct 27, 2022W.D. Mich.Defendant Win

McGinnes

Oct 26, 2022S.D. OhioDismissed

Parker

Oct 26, 2022E.D. Mich.Dismissed

Crook

Oct 25, 2022E.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Drake

Oct 24, 2022W.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Ashford

Oct 18, 2022E.D. Mich.Mixed Result

Mata

Oct 14, 2022E.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

Wormald

Oct 13, 2022N.D. OhioDismissed

Adams

Oct 11, 2022E.D. Tenn.Dismissed

Browse Other Circuits

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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.