Dive Brief:

• The legal debates over North Carolina’s controversial House Bill 2 rage on, as employment lawyers from both sides of the issue are voicing their views. Some say the legislation includes a single sentence that removes the right to sue in state court for discrimination due to race, gender, religion or age, according to the Charlotte Observer

• The sentence is: “This Article does not create, and shall not be construed to create or support, a statutory or common law private right of action, and no person may bring any civil action based upon the public policy expressed herein.” 

• According to the Observer, North Carolina courts had held since 1985 that under that public policy doctrine, people who proved discrimination could recover damages in state court under common law. But that's no longer the case.

Dive Insight:

Laura Noble, a Chapel Hill lawyer who represents workers in cases filed in state and federal courts, told the Observers she is "hopeful that it was an oversight and with awareness, the legislature will go back and fix it."

And while workers can sue for discrimination through federal courts and the EEOC, Noble and other employment rights attorneys told the Observers that it's a much tougher legal path and typically results in lower awards. Plus, under federal law, workers have only 6 months to file a discrimination claim, but the state offers a three-year window.