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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

National Labor Relations Board v. Dole Fresh Vegetables, Inc.

May 28, 20036th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Sherwin Williams Co. Employee Health Plan Trust v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue

May 23, 20036th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Frank E. Adams v. Flora J. Holland, Warden

May 20, 20036th CircuitRemanded

Adams

May 20, 20036th CircuitRemanded

Garcia

May 19, 2003E.D. Mich.Defendant Win

National Labor Relations Board v. Pinnacle Metal Products Co.

May 19, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Mt. Clemens General Hospital v. National Labor Relations Board

May 15, 20036th CircuitPlaintiff Win

NLRB v. Mt. Clemens Hospital

May 15, 20036th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Mt. Clemens General Hospital v. National Labor Relations Board

May 15, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

James B. Driver v. United States Postal Service, Inc. American Postal Workers Union, Afl-Cio

May 14, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Love

May 12, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Herrington

May 2, 2003N.D. OhioDefendant Win

Werthan Packaging, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board

May 2, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Equal Opportunity Employment Commission v. Ethan Allen, Inc.

Apr 25, 2003N.D. OhioSettlement

Deja Vu of Cincinnati, L.L.C. v. Union Township Board of Trustees

Apr 24, 20036th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Deja Vu Of Cincinnati, L.L.C. v. The Union Township Board Of Trustees

Apr 24, 20036th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Lee v. National Labor Relations Board

Apr 8, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Lee v. NLRB

Apr 8, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Earl Lee v. National Labor Relations Board

Apr 8, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Arthur Allen (01-6073), Randall S. Ballard (01-6074), and Joe K. Fannin (01-6075) v. Csx Transportation, Inc. And United Transportation Union

Apr 4, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

Apr 4, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Autozone, Inc.

Mar 31, 2003W.D. Tenn.Plaintiff Win

Hoffa

Mar 31, 2003E.D. Mich.Mixed Result

Burt Lancaster v. Stanley Adams, Warden

Mar 26, 20036th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Serrato

Mar 24, 2003N.D. OhioDefendant Win

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Pointe at Kirby Gate, LLC

Mar 19, 2003W.D. Tenn.Mixed Result

B + B Electric Co. v. Electrical Workers Local Union No. 369 Retirement Fund

Mar 14, 2003W.D. Ky.Plaintiff Win

Tennessee Valley Authority v. United States Secretary of Labor

Mar 6, 20036th CircuitPlaintiff Win

Local Union No. 172, Int'l Ass'n of Bridge, Structural Ornamental & Reinforcing Ironworkers v. P.J. Dick Inc.

Mar 4, 2003S.D. OhioRemanded

Viciedo

Feb 26, 2003S.D. OhioMixed Result

Awrey Bakeries, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board

Feb 25, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Danis-Shook Joint Venture Xxv v. Secretary of Labor

Feb 20, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Danis-Shook

Feb 20, 20036th CircuitMixed Result

Mead Corporation Factory Mutual Insurance Company National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh v. Abb Power Generation, Inc.

Feb 11, 20036th CircuitMixed Result

Jastremski

Jan 31, 2003N.D. OhioDefendant Win

Wilkie Co. v. National Labor Relations Board

Jan 29, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Kersh

Jan 27, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Secretary of Labor, United States Department of Labor v. 3re.com, Inc., General Electric Capital Corporation

Jan 23, 20036th CircuitMixed Result

Adams

Jan 23, 20036th CircuitDefendant Win

Sec Labor v. 3RE.COM, Inc.

Jan 23, 20036th CircuitRemanded

Redd

Jan 22, 2003S.D. OhioDefendant Win

American Civil Liberties Union v. Mercer County

Jan 22, 2003E.D. Ky.Defendant Win

Deetjen

Jan 14, 2003W.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Javitch

Jan 10, 20036th CircuitRemanded

Bosscher

Jan 3, 2003W.D. Mich.Defendant Win

Kamtech, Inc. v. NLRB

Dec 18, 20026th CircuitDefendant Win

Adams

Dec 11, 20026th CircuitDefendant Win

Martinez-Estrada

Dec 10, 20026th CircuitDefendant Win

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local Union No. 245 v. FirstEnergy Corp.

Nov 27, 2002N.D. OhioDefendant Win

Crosby

Nov 26, 2002W.D. Mich.Plaintiff 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.