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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

Doud v. Michigan Attorney Grievance Administrator

Mar 1, 20186th CircuitDefendant Win

Robbie Ohlendorf v. United Food & Commerical Workers Int'l Union, Local 876

Feb 22, 20186th CircuitDefendant Win

Barkovic

Dec 22, 2017E.D. Mich.Dismissed

FLRA

Dec 18, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Mohamed v. 1st Class Staffing, LLC

Dec 14, 2017S.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Anwar v. Dow Chemical Co.

Nov 30, 20176th CircuitDismissed

M. Kathleen McKinney v. Ozburn-Hessey Logistics

Nov 9, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Lanier

Nov 1, 2017W.D. Ky.Defendant Win

International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 18 v. National Labor Relations Board

Oct 31, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Lahndorff

Oct 4, 2017W.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Dolgencorp, LLC

Sep 28, 2017E.D. Tenn.Plaintiff Win

UAW

Sep 22, 20176th CircuitRemanded

UAW

Aug 16, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

National Credit Union Administration Board v. Jurcevic

Aug 11, 20176th CircuitMixed Result

Nat'l Credit Union Admin. Bd. v. Stan Jurcevic

Aug 11, 20176th CircuitMixed Result

Committee to Impose Term Limits on the Ohio Supreme Court & to Preclude Special Legal Status for Members & Employees of the Ohio General Assembly v. Ohio Ballot Board

Jul 28, 2017S.D. OhioDefendant Win

Robert Johnston v. Dow Employees' Pension Plan

Jul 19, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

AFSCME

Jul 14, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Sun Life Assurance Co. of Canada v. Conestoga Trust Services, LLC

Jul 12, 2017E.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Employers Insurance of Wausau v. McGraw Edison Company

Jun 30, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

McCarty v. National Union Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh

Jun 27, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Innovation Ventures, LLC. v. Custom Nutrition Laboratories, LLC.

Jun 12, 2017E.D. Mich.Mixed Result

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. AutoZone, Inc.

Jun 9, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. United Parcel Service, Inc.

Jun 9, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

UPS

Jun 9, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

National Labor Relations Board v. Alternative Entertainment, Inc.

May 26, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Lindsay ex rel. National Labor Relations Board v. Mike-Sell's Potato Chip Co.

May 26, 2017S.D. OhioDefendant Win

National Credit Union Administration Board v. Cumis Insurance Society, Inc.

May 18, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Roemer Industries, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board

May 4, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 18 v. Ohio Contractors Ass'n

May 2, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

UAW

Apr 20, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Young

Apr 12, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Serge Adamov v. US Bank Nat'l Assoc.

Mar 7, 20176th CircuitRemanded

National Labor Relations Board v. Lakepointe Senior Care & Rehab Center, LLC

Feb 23, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Pamela Rheinfrank v. Abbott Laboratories

Feb 21, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Adair

Feb 16, 2017E.D. Tenn.Mixed Result

Ohio Edison Co. v. National Labor Relations Board

Feb 10, 20176th CircuitDefendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. M.G.H. Family Health Center

Jan 30, 2017W.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

Brian Lofgren v. AirTrona Canada

Jan 27, 20176th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Pinkston-Poling

Dec 29, 2016W.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implement Workers of America v. National Labor Relations Board

Dec 21, 20166th CircuitDefendant Win

National Labor Relations Board v. Jag Healthcare, Inc.

Dec 13, 20166th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Stryker Corp. v. National Union Fire Insurance Co.

Nov 18, 20166th CircuitDefendant Win

Kozlowski

Oct 28, 2016E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Kellogg Co. v. National Labor Relations Board

Oct 26, 20166th CircuitMixed Result

Deschamps

Sep 12, 20166th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Harry Smith v. Secretary of Labor

Aug 25, 20166th CircuitDefendant Win

Kellogg Company v. NLRB

Aug 19, 20166th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, Inc.

Aug 18, 2016E.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

National Labor Relations Board v. Klochko Equipment Rental Co.

Aug 16, 20166th CircuitPlaintiff 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.