ON BACKGROUND
On March 25, 2026, a federal court in New York City gave the green light for Wigdor client Joanne Kim to proceed with claims that her former employer Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc., terminated her employment because she had to care for her disabled child.
According to the Court, Wigdor alleged sufficient facts to potentially show that Ms. Kim’s “termination was motivated by fear that she would be inattentive at work due to the disability of her child.” In reaching its conclusion, the Court pointed out that Ms. Kim “was terminated just four days after she asked for a flexible schedule that accommodated her daughter’s needs.” The Court also observed that Regeneron’s excuse for dismissing Ms. Kim – that her role had purportedly been eliminated – was undermined by allegations that, after dismissing Ms. Kim, Regeneron “hired ‘consultants’ to fulfill [Ms. Kim’s] job responsibilities.” Finally, the Court rejected the efforts of Ms. Kim’s supervisor to escape the lawsuit. It found that Ms. Kim’s supervisor can be held individually liable because he is “alleged to have been an active participant in the alleged discrimination by Regeneron.”
The full decision may be found here.
Full details re: Kim v. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Ashutosh Katiyar as well as the complaint may be found here.
ON RECORD
Statement from Valdi Licul (Partner, Wigdor LLP):
“We are pleased that the Court has allowed Ms. Kim to move forward with her lawsuit. There should be no question about the right to care for a disabled child without fear of derailing your career. We look forward to litigating this case to protect Ms. Kim’s rights.”
Please reach out to Wigdor LLP Partner Valdi Licul (vlicul@wigdorlaw.com) or Director of Marketing Tess Neudeck (tneudeck@wigdorlaw.com) with any questions.