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Employment Rulings in the Third Circuit

The Third Circuit covers the federal courts in Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The rulings below come from the circuit's court of appeals and the federal trial courts within it.

Of the 2,094 published rulings we track here (19672026), 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 2,094 published rulings we track in the Third Circuit.

Defendant Win
901 (43%)
Plaintiff Win
333 (16%)
Mixed Result
329 (16%)
Dismissed
318 (15%)
Remanded
170 (8%)
Settlement
43 (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 2,060 rulings we could classify by stage were decided.

Appeal
880 (43%)

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
357 (17%)

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 357 summary-judgment rulings here, 219 ended the case in the employer’s favor and 137 let the worker’s claims continue; the rest resolved in other ways.

Motion to dismiss
669 (32%)

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

Trial verdict
53 (3%)

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

Settlement / consent decree
32 (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
40 (2%)

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

Other rulings
29 (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 Third Circuit covers.

Recent Rulings in the Third Circuit

American Civil Liberties Union v. Gonzales

Mar 22, 2007E.D. Pa.Plaintiff Win

Adams USA, Inc. v. Reda Sports, Inc.

Mar 22, 20073rd CircuitDismissed

Merisant Co. v. McNeil Nutritionals, LLC

Mar 2, 2007E.D. Pa.Mixed Result

Loos

Feb 28, 2007W.D. Pa.Mixed Result

Trafford Distribution Center v. National Labor Relations Board

Feb 26, 20073rd CircuitDefendant Win

National Union Fire Insurance v. General Star Indemnity Co.

Feb 16, 20073rd CircuitDefendant Win

Schreibeis

Feb 7, 20073rd CircuitRemanded

Oppong

Jan 26, 20073rd CircuitRemanded

Adams

Jan 22, 20073rd CircuitDefendant Win

Elaine L. Chao, Secretary of Labor, United States Department of Labor v. Community Trust Company

Jan 19, 20073rd CircuitDefendant Win

Secretary Labor v. Comm Trust Co

Jan 19, 20073rd CircuitDefendant Win

Judge

Dec 8, 20063rd CircuitDismissed

United Food & Commercial Workers Union Local 1776 v. Excel Corp.

Dec 1, 20063rd CircuitMixed Result

Adamson

Nov 16, 2006D.N.J.Defendant Win

Herman

Nov 8, 2006E.D. Pa.Mixed Result

Wyeth

Oct 26, 2006D. Del.Mixed Result

Extendicare Health Services, Inc. v. District 1199p, Service Employees International Union

Oct 17, 2006M.D. Pa.Plaintiff Win

Schuldiner

Sep 21, 2006E.D. Pa.Defendant Win

LoManto

Sep 12, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Lomanto

Sep 12, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

James

Sep 8, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Rhoades

Sep 6, 20063rd CircuitDismissed

Pichler

Aug 30, 2006E.D. Pa.Plaintiff Win

Pressman-Gutman Co. v. First Union National Bank

Aug 18, 20063rd CircuitDismissed

Siegel

Aug 18, 2006E.D. Pa.Defendant Win

Accuride Erie L.P. v. International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implement Workers of America

Aug 11, 2006W.D. Pa.Defendant Win

Valdes

Jul 24, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Toy

Jul 21, 2006D. Del.Defendant Win

Davis v. Mountaire Farms, Inc.

Jul 20, 20063rd CircuitPlaintiff Win

Florence Mining Co. v. Director, OWCP, United States Department of Labor

Jul 19, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Forest Laboratories, Inc. v. Ivax Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Jul 13, 2006D. Del.Defendant Win

Wilson

Jun 12, 2006D. Del.Defendant Win

Kehres

Jun 1, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Service Employees International Union, Local 3 Rachel Canning Velvet Hazard v. Municipality of Mt. Lebanon

Apr 28, 20063rd CircuitPlaintiff Win

Ser Empl Intl Union v. Mun Mt Lebanon

Apr 28, 20063rd CircuitPlaintiff Win

Kendellen

Apr 17, 2006D.N.J.Plaintiff Win

ITT Industries, Inc. v. Pacific Employers Insurance

Apr 13, 2006E.D. Pa.Dismissed

Uniontown Hospital v. Chauffeurs, Teamsters & Helpers, Local Union No. 491

Mar 27, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Goff

Mar 24, 2006E.D. Pa.Defendant Win

Wiggins

Mar 20, 2006D.N.J.Defendant Win

Carson Concrete Corp. v. Secretary of Labor

Feb 27, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Lane

Feb 21, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Engelhard Corporation v. National Labor Relations Board

Feb 14, 20063rd CircuitPlaintiff Win

Local 1430, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, AFL-CIO v. National Labor Relations Board

Feb 14, 20063rd CircuitPlaintiff Win

Engelhard Corp v. NLRB

Feb 14, 20063rd CircuitDefendant Win

Miller v. Director, OWCP, United States Department of Labor

Jan 30, 20063rd CircuitRemanded

Schnabel Foundation Co. v. International Union of Operating Engineers Local 542

Jan 27, 2006E.D. Pa.Plaintiff Win

Adapt of Philadelphia v. Philadelphia Housing Authority

Jan 9, 20063rd CircuitDismissed

ADAPT

Jan 9, 20063rd CircuitDismissed

Adapt Of Philadelphiladelphia v. Philadelphia Housing Authority

Jan 9, 20063rd CircuitDismissed

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.