Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani Partner Jonathan R. Stuckel obtained a significant early-stage victory in the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, defeating an employment-related lawsuit at the preliminary objections stage.
The case involved a pro se plaintiff who asserted a claim styled as a “hostile work environment” arising from her employment, but whose reinstated pleading relied largely on conclusory allegations and attachments, including personal text messages and a resignation email, that did not plead actionable workplace misconduct.
GRSM aggressively challenged the complaint on multiple threshold grounds, including that the plaintiff failed to plead exhaustion of administrative remedies required under the PHRA and Title VII before filing suit. GRSM also argued that the dispute was subject to a mutual arbitration agreement, requiring employment-related claims to be resolved in binding arbitration administered by the AAA, and sought either dismissal of the case or a court order compelling arbitration.
The court sustained the preliminary objections and dismissed the complaint, without prejudice to the plaintiff’s ability to pursue administrative relief or proceed through arbitration under the parties’ agreement, effectively moving the dispute out of court at the outset. The result underscores GRSM’s skill in leveraging arbitration to mitigate litigation exposure and position clients for successful outcomes in matters involving the potential for attorneys’ fee-shifting and punitive damages.