Liu v. County of Cook (Summary)

DISCRIMINATION

Liu v. County of Cook, No. 10-C-6544 (N.D. Ill. Mar. 3, 2014)

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, granted the motion for summary judgment filed by the defendants (the county and three surgeons who held leadership positions), dismissing over a dozen claims brought by a former surgeon. After being discharged from her position as a surgeon, the plaintiff, a woman of Chinese descent, brought claims including racial discrimination, sexual discrimination, and retaliation. The surgeon had been warned and reprimanded numerous times for her repeated failure to operate on patients with appendicitis, yet had failed to modify her practices. After a patient almost died, the Surgical Oversight Committee suspended the surgeon’s privileges and sent her case to a peer review, which recommended the suspension remain in effect. The surgeon’s application for reappointment was denied due to her previous failure to adhere to standards of patient care. The defendants maintained that their actions were based solely on the surgeon’s failure to operate on appendicitis patients, and not on any form of discrimination.

The court held that evidence put forth by the plaintiff was insufficient to show direct discrimination, and insufficient to conclude that the defendants’ explanation was a dishonest pretext for any form of discrimination. Rather, discipline for workplace infractions is not inherently offensive, and any kind of subsequent hostile environment was not based on her sex, race, or national origin. Additionally, the court found insufficient evidence that the defendants’ actions were retaliation for her complaints about discrimination.