Jahan C. Sagafi

Sagafi represents plaintiffs in class action lawsuits accusing high-profile companies of different types of discriminatory practices.

He is helping pursue a putative class action against PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP alleging that the accounting giant engages in systemic and pervasive discrimination against older job applicants. Rabin et al. v. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, 3:16-cv-02276 (N.D. Cal., filed April 27, 2016).

In February, U.S. District Judge Jon S. Tigar denied PwC’s motion for judgment on the pleadings regarding the plaintiffs’ disparate impact claim under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, known as the ADEA.

Tigar diverged from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in ruling that job applicants can bring disparate impact claims under the ADEA.

“Confirming the availability of the traditional disparate impact theory allows plaintiffs to challenge policies and practices that, though neutral on their face, have a discriminatory effect that harms members of the protected class,” Sagafi said. “So, here, a focus on recruiting college students may not be intended to exclude older applicants, but it could have the effect of disproportionately hindering older workers’ efforts to get a job.”

Sagafi also represents plaintiffs in a putative class action against Facebook Inc. involving the tools the social media giant provides to businesses that allow them to target certain individuals and groups with advertisements. Onuoha et al. v. Facebook Inc., 5:16-cv-06440 (N.D. Cal., filed Nov. 3, 2016). The suit alleges that Facebook’s business tools enable and encourage discrimination by excluding African Americans, Latinos, and Asian Americans from receiving advertisements for “Relevant Opportunities.” Facebook is accused of violating the California Fair Employment and Housing Act and the U.S. Equal Credit Opportunity Act, among other statutes.

“Because more and more recruiting and advertising of economic opportunity — such as job openings and housing options — is done online through social media, this case marks an opportunity to ensure that Facebook doesn’t restrict such opportunities to white people by structuring its customer filtering tools in a way that has a disparate impact on people of color,” said Sagafi, partner in charge of Outten & Golden’s San Francisco office.

He credits his desire to fight discrimination to his Quaker upbringing, which emphasized justice, fair treatment, and activism. Sagafi also highlighted how his mother previously litigated against employment discrimination in Texas and Maryland.

— Lyle Moran