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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

AK

Mar 25, 2021M.D. Tenn.Dismissed

Hines

Mar 25, 2021E.D. Mich.Dismissed

Laborers' International Union of North America v. Churchill Downs Racetrack, LLC

Mar 23, 2021W.D. Ky.Plaintiff Win

Withers

Mar 19, 2021W.D. Ky.Plaintiff Win

McPherson

Mar 16, 2021W.D. Tenn.Dismissed

Price

Mar 11, 2021E.D. Mich.Dismissed

Sevier Cnty. Schs. Fed. Credit Union v. Branch Banking & Trust Co.

Mar 5, 20216th CircuitRemanded

American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada, AFL-CIO v. Rural Media Group, Inc.

Mar 5, 2021M.D. Tenn.Mixed Result

McCool

Mar 4, 2021M.D. Tenn.Dismissed

D.S.S.

Mar 1, 2021W.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Bailey

Feb 22, 2021S.D. OhioDismissed

Burton

Feb 18, 2021E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Southall

Feb 10, 2021M.D. Tenn.Plaintiff Win

Marcum

Feb 10, 2021W.D. Ky.Mixed Result

International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local Union No. 413 v. The Kroger Co.

Feb 9, 2021S.D. OhioMixed Result

Bonds

Feb 8, 2021S.D. OhioMixed Result

MacKnight

Feb 4, 2021S.D. OhioDefendant Win

Thompson

Feb 4, 2021N.D. OhioMixed Result

Southall

Feb 3, 2021M.D. Tenn.Plaintiff Win

O'Dell

Feb 3, 2021S.D. OhioDefendant Win

Barta

Feb 2, 2021S.D. OhioDefendant Win

Shull

Jan 29, 2021E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Pynkala

Jan 26, 2021W.D. Tenn.Dismissed

Local Union No. 5 Trustees of the Bricklayers and Masons', Ohio Pension Fund v. Masonry Contracting Corporation

Jan 25, 2021N.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Kavalec

Jan 25, 2021N.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Gradall Industries, Inc. v. International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, District Lodge 54

Jan 25, 2021N.D. OhioDefendant Win

Coates

Jan 22, 2021W.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Trustees of the Bricklayers and Masons Local No. 22 Pension Plan v. 5 STAR MASONRY LLC

Jan 21, 2021S.D. OhioDismissed

Burton

Jan 19, 2021E.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

Maertens

Jan 14, 2021E.D. Mich.Dismissed

Gradall Industries, Inc. v. International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, District Lodge 54

Jan 13, 2021N.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Freeman

Jan 7, 2021E.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Simmons

Jan 5, 2021S.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Salinas Solis v. Capital Grille Holdings, Inc.

Dec 28, 2020S.D. OhioDefendant Win

Scalia

Dec 23, 2020W.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

James Perna v. Health One Credit Union

Dec 21, 20206th CircuitDefendant Win

Wanner

Dec 21, 2020M.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

EEOC v. HP Pelzer Auto. Sys.

Dec 18, 20206th CircuitDefendant Win

Saddler

Dec 11, 2020E.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Emery

Dec 9, 2020M.D. Tenn.Mixed Result

Walter Smith v. Union Ins. Co.

Dec 7, 20206th CircuitMixed Result

Glass

Dec 4, 2020N.D. OhioMixed Result

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Georgina's LLC

Dec 4, 2020W.D. Mich.Mixed Result

McDaniel

Dec 4, 2020E.D. Mich.Mixed Result

Myers

Dec 2, 2020S.D. OhioDismissed

Churchill Downs Racetrack, LLC v. Laborers' International Union of North America

Nov 25, 2020W.D. Ky.Plaintiff Win

Potter v.Dawn Food Products, Inc.

Nov 24, 2020E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Marcum

Nov 24, 2020W.D. Ky.Mixed Result

Altenhofen

Nov 23, 2020W.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Gilbo

Nov 20, 2020N.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Browse Other Circuits

Explore employment rulings from the other federal 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.