Reverse Discrimination After Ames: What Employers Should Know

In June 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States resolved a circuit split centered around the framework for analyzing employment discrimination actions raised by majority-group plaintiffs under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Several circuits required majority-group plaintiffs to satisfy their prima facie case of discrimination under the McDonnell Douglas framework along with ‘background circumstances showing that the employer is the rare employer who discriminates against the majority.[1]

The Supreme Court took up the case to determine whether the ‘background circumstances’ requirement was consistent with Title VII. In reviewing the plain text of Title VII and its own precedents, the Court determined that the ‘background circumstances’ rule is not consistent with the language of Title VII or precedents.

Notably, the Supreme Court focused on the plain text of Title VII, which makes no distinction between majority-group plaintiffs and minority-group plaintiffs. (pg. 5). Title VII focuses on individuals’ rights, not the rights of groups as a collective, and requires that individuals not be treated differently because of their protected characteristics, regardless of whether they are in the majority or minority.

The majority opinion of the Court produced a direct, short decision. In a concurring opinion, Justices Thomas and Gorsuch offered additional observations concerning the future of the McDonnell Douglas framework, noting that they are “willing to consider whether the McDonnell Douglas framework is a workable and useful evidentiary tool.”

This raises a broader question: Is this the beginning of the end of the McDonnell Douglas framework in employment discrimination cases?

[1] The 6th, 7th, 8th, 10th, and D.C. Circuits required ‘background circumstances’