Opinion ID: 2569285
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Heading: General principles (McDonnell Douglas test).

Text: Because of the similarity between state and federal employment discrimination laws, California courts look to pertinent federal precedent when applying our own statutes. (See, e.g., Mixon v. Fair Employment & Housing Com. (1987) 192 Cal.App.3d 1306, 1316, 237 Cal.Rptr. 884 ( Mixon ).) In particular, California has adopted the three-stage burden-shifting test established by the United States Supreme Court for trying claims of discrimination, including age discrimination, based on a theory of disparate treatment. ( Texas Dept. of Community Affairs v. Burdine (1981) 450 U.S. 248, 101 S.Ct. 1089, 67 L.Ed.2d 207 ( Burdine ); McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green (1973) 411 U.S. 792, 93 S.Ct. 1817, 36 L.Ed.2d 668 ( McDonnell Douglas ); Martin v. Lockheed Missiles & Space Co. (1994) 29 Cal. App.4th 1718, 1730, 35 Cal.Rptr.2d 181 ( Martin) ; Ewing v. Gill Industries, Inc. (1992) 3 Cal.App.4th 601, 610-611, 614, 4 Cal.Rptr.2d 640 ( Ewing) ; County of Alameda v. Fair Employment & Housing Com. (1984) 153 Cal.App.3d 499, 504, 200 Cal.Rptr. 381; see Gonzales v. MetPath, Inc. (1989) 214 Cal.App.3d 422, 426, 262 Cal.Rptr. 654.) [20] This so-called McDonnell Douglas test reflects the principle that direct evidence of intentional discrimination is rare, and that such claims must usually be proved circumstantially. Thus, by successive steps of increasingly narrow focus, the test allows discrimination to be inferred from facts that create a reasonable likelihood of bias and are not satisfactorily explained. At trial, the McDonnell Douglas test places on the plaintiff the initial burden to establish a prima facie case of discrimination. This step is designed to eliminate at the outset the most patently meritless claims, as where the plaintiff is not a member of the protected class or was clearly unqualified, or where the job he sought was withdrawn and never filled. ( Burdine, supra, 450 U.S. 248, 253-254, 101 S.Ct. 1089, 67 L.Ed.2d 207; Caldwell v. Paramount Unified School Dist. (1995) 41 Cal.App.4th 189, 202, 48 Cal. Rptr.2d 448 ( Caldwell ).) While the plaintiffs prima facie burden is not onerous ( Burdine, supra, at p. 253, 101 S.Ct. 1089), he must at least show `actions taken by the employer from which one can infer, if such actions remain unexplained, that it is more likely than not that such actions were based on a [prohibited] discriminatory criterion.... [Citation].' [Citation.] ( Ibarbia v. Regents of University of California (1987) 191 Cal.App.3d 1318, 1327-1328, 237 Cal.Rptr. 92, quoting Furnco Construction Corp. v. Waters (1978) 438 U.S. 567, 576, 98 S.Ct. 2943, 57 L.Ed.2d 957.) The specific elements of a prima facie case may vary depending on the particular facts. ( Burdine, supra, 450 U.S. 248, 253, fn. 6, 101 S.Ct. 1089, 67 L.Ed.2d 207; see also Teamsters, supra, 431 U.S. 324, 358, 97 S.Ct. 1843, 52 L.Ed.2d 396.) Generally, the plaintiff must provide evidence that (1) he was a member of a protected class, (2) he was qualified for the position he sought or was performing competently in the position he held, (3) he suffered an adverse employment action, such as termination, demotion, or denial of an available job, and (4) some other circumstance suggests discriminatory motive. (E.g., Burdine, supra, at p. 253, 101 S.Ct. 1089; Nidds v. Schindler Elevator Corp. (9th Cir. 1996) 113 F.3d 912, 917 ( Nidds ) [FEHA claim]; Rose v. Wells Fargo & Co. (9th Cir.1990) 902 F.2d 1417, 1421.) [21] If, at trial, the plaintiff establishes a prima facie case, a presumption of discrimination arises. ( St. Mary's Honor Center v. Hicks (1993) 509 U.S. 502, 506, 113 S.Ct. 2742, 125 L.Ed.2d 407 ( Hicks ); Burdine, supra, 450 U.S. 248, 254, 101 S.Ct. 1089, 67 L.Ed.2d 207.) This presumption, though rebuttable, is legally mandatory. ( Burdine, supra, at p. 254, fn. 7, 101 S.Ct. 1089; see also Hicks, supra, at p. 506, 113 S.Ct. 2742.) Thus, in a trial, [i]f the trier of fact believes the plaintiffs evidence, and if the employer is silent in the face of the presumption, the court must enter judgment for the plaintiff because no issue of fact remains in the case. ( Burdine, supra, at p. 254, 101 S.Ct. 1089, fn. omitted; see also Hicks, supra, at p. 506,113 S.Ct. 2742.) Accordingly, at this trial stage, the burden shifts to the employer to rebut the presumption by producing admissible evidence, sufficient to raise[] a genuine issue of fact and to justify a judgment for the [employer], that its action was taken for a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason. ( Burdine, supra, 450 U.S. at pp. 254-255, 101 S.Ct. 1089; Clark v. Claremont University Center (1992) 6 Cal. App.4th 639, 663-664, 8 Cal.Rptr.2d 151 ( Clark ); see Hicks, supra, 509 U.S. at pp. 506-507, 509, 113 S.Ct. 2742 [evidence which, taken as true, would permit the conclusion that there was a nondiscriminatory reason (italics omitted) ].) If the employer sustains this burden, the presumption of discrimination disappears. ( Hicks, supra, 509 U.S. 502, 510-511, 113 S.Ct. 2742, 125 L.Ed.2d 407; Burdine, supra, 450 U.S. 248, 255, 101 S.Ct. 1089, 67 L.Ed.2d 207; Mixon, supra, 192 Cal.App.3d 1306, 1319, 237 Cal.Rptr. 884.) The plaintiff must then have the opportunity to attack the employer's proffered reasons as pretexts for discrimination, or to offer any other evidence of discriminatory motive. ( Hicks, supra, at pp. 515-518, 113 S.Ct. 2742; Burdine, supra, at p. 256, 101 S.Ct. 1089; Clark, supra, 6 Cal.App.4th 639, 664-665, 8 Cal. Rptr.2d 151.) In an appropriate case, evidence of dishonest reasons, considered together with the elements of the prima facie case, may permit a finding of prohibited bias. ( Reeves, supra, 530 U.S. 133, 148-149, 120 S.Ct. 2097, 2109; Hicks, supra, at pp. 511, 518, 113 S.Ct. 2742.) The ultimate burden of persuasion on the issue of actual discrimination remains with the plaintiff. ( Reeves, supra, at pp. 142-143,120 S.Ct. at p. 2106; Hicks, supra, at p. 518, 113 S.Ct. 2742; U.S. Postal Service Bd. of Govs. v. Aikens (1983) 460 U.S. 711, 716, 103 S.Ct. 1478, 75 L.Ed.2d 403; Burdine, supra, at p. 256,101 S.Ct. 1089.)