In an employment discrimination lawsuit, the plaintiff has the initial burden of proving a prima facie case. However, once the plaintiff has met his or her burden, the burden shifts to the defendant employer, who has the burden of proffering nondiscriminatory reasons that the unlawful employment practices were used by the employer. Pursuant to the Florida Civil Rights Act of 1992, employment discrimination based on disparate treatment requires a finding by the court that the employer's proffered evidence of legitimate nondiscriminatory reasons for termination, were actually false or a pretext for discrimination. However, the defendant's burden of production is exceedingly light, and the defendant must merely proffer nondiscrimination based reasons, not prove them.

A West Palm Beach employment discrimination lawyer will advise a plaintiff that he or she must satisfy the ultimate burden of showing that a discriminatory reason more likely than not motivated the adverse employment decision. Additionally, if the plaintiff can establish that the employer had mixed motives for the disparate treatment or the adverse employment decision, and the plaintiff meets his or her burden that an unlawful or impermissible factor was a significant motivation in the adverse decision, the burden of proof will shift to the defendant to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that it would have reached the same decision even without an improper motive.

A cause of action for employment discrimination may have many complex issues. Therefore, you should consult with an experienced West Palm Beach employment discrimination lawyer. Call Sharmin & Sharmin P.A. at 1-800-74-TRIAL.