Reversing a $3 million jury verdict in favor of a former human resources executive on his wrongful termination claim, the California Court of Appeal has ruled that the executive failed to establish that the employer’s decision not to continue his employment following a corporate acquisition was retaliatory. Winston v. Countrywide Financial Corp. et al., No. B232823 (Cal. Ct. App. Feb. 19, 2013) (unpublished). The Court declined to apply the “cat’s paw” doctrine, which permits the improper motive of a non-decision maker to be imputed to the decision maker in certain circumstances. Here, the executive offered no evidence that the decision maker knew about the executive’s prior protected activity or that the executive’s former supervisor had any influence in the employer’s decision not to continue his employment.
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