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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

Dragomier

Oct 31, 2014N.D. OhioDefendant Win

VHS University Laboratories, Inc. v. Local 283 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters

Oct 24, 2014E.D. Mich.Mixed Result

International Longshoremen's Ass'n, Local Union No. 1768 v. Midwest Terminals of Toledo International, Inc.

Sep 18, 2014N.D. OhioMixed Result

SOL

Sep 9, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 18 v. Laborers' International Union

Sep 8, 20146th CircuitPlaintiff Win

EEOC v. Ford Motor Company

Aug 29, 20146th CircuitRemanded

Mohan Kutty v. United States Dep't of Labor

Aug 20, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

MSHA

Aug 19, 20146th CircuitDismissed

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Tepro, Inc.

Aug 14, 2014E.D. Tenn.Mixed Result

Russell v. Catholic Healthcare Partners Employee Long Term Disability Plan

Aug 14, 20146th CircuitMixed Result

Angel Jet Services, LLC v. Cleveland Clinic Employee Health Plan Total Care

Jul 21, 2014N.D. OhioDefendant Win

Trustees of Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters' Employee Benefits Fund v. H.B. Stubbs Co.

Jul 17, 2014E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Rusby Adams, Jr. v. Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.

Jul 11, 20146th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Rusby Adams, Jr. v. Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.

Jul 11, 20146th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Canada v. American Airlines, Inc. Pilot Retirement Benefit Program

Jul 9, 20146th CircuitMixed Result

International Union v. Honeywell International Inc.

Jun 12, 2014E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

DOL

May 28, 20146th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Hankins

May 23, 2014M.D. Tenn.Mixed Result

American Civil Liberties Union Fund v. Livingston County

May 15, 2014E.D. Mich.Plaintiff Win

Charles Spadafore v. Aurora Loan Services, LLC

Apr 23, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

United Steel, Paper & Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing Energy, Allied Industrial & Service Workers International Union, AFL-CIO-DC v. Kelsey-Hayes Co.

Apr 22, 20146th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Ford Motor Co.

Apr 22, 20146th CircuitRemanded

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Kaplan Higher Education Corp.

Apr 9, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

EEOC v. Kaplan Higher Educ. Corp.

Apr 9, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

Savers Prop.& Cas. v. Nat'l Union Fire Ins.

Apr 9, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

Teamsters Local Union 480 v. United Parcel Service, Inc.

Apr 4, 20146th CircuitMixed Result

Coles

Mar 26, 2014S.D. OhioDismissed

Evans

Mar 25, 2014N.D. OhioPlaintiff Win

Preston Barbee v. Union City Bd. of Educ.

Mar 17, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

Knall Beverage, Inc. v. Teamsters Local Union No. 293 Pension Plan

Mar 4, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

Knall Beverage, Inc. v. Teamsters Local Union No. 293 Pension Plan

Mar 4, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

UAW

Mar 3, 20146th CircuitPlaintiff Win

MSHA

Mar 3, 20146th CircuitDefendant Win

Javery v. Lucent Technologies, Inc. Long Term Disability Plan for Management or LBA Employees

Feb 3, 20146th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Hugo

Jan 6, 2014E.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Legatus v. Sebelius

Dec 20, 2013E.D. Mich.Dismissed

Wayne Henschel v. Clare County Road Commission

Dec 13, 20136th CircuitMixed Result

International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace, & Agricultural Workers of America v. General Motors, LLC

Dec 10, 2013E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Local Union 2-2000 United Steel, Paper & Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied-Industrial, Chemical & Service Workers International Union v. Coca-Cola Refreshments USA, Inc.

Nov 8, 20136th CircuitPlaintiff Win

National Labor Relations Board v. Allied Mechanical Services, Inc.

Oct 30, 20136th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Helen Adams v. General Motors

Oct 24, 20136th CircuitDefendant Win

Rachells v. Cingular Wireless Employee Services, LLC

Oct 17, 20136th CircuitRemanded

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Peoplemark, Inc.

Oct 7, 20136th CircuitDefendant Win

Board of Trustees of the Plumbers, Pipefitters & Mechanical Equipment Service, Local Union No. 392 Pension Fund v. B & B Mechanical Services, Inc.

Sep 29, 2013S.D. OhioMixed Result

Jenkins

Sep 6, 2013W.D. Tenn.Defendant Win

Teamsters Local Union No. 436 v. The J.M. Smucker Company

Sep 5, 20136th CircuitDefendant Win

All Seasons Climate Control, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board

Aug 28, 20136th CircuitDefendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. New Breed Logistics

Aug 23, 2013W.D. Tenn.Mixed Result

Kindred Nursing Centers East, LLC v. National Labor Relations Board

Aug 15, 20136th CircuitMixed Result

Kindred Nursing Centers East v. NLRB

Aug 15, 20136th 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.