Cleveland – On November 26, 2024, a U.S. District Judge Pamela A. Barker of the Northern District of Ohio ruled that AstraZeneca discriminated against former employee Jonathan Bobnar when it denied his religious-based exemption from the company’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate. The judge granted partial summary judgment in Bobnar’s favor on his religious discrimination claim.

The court found that AstraZeneca failed to demonstrate it would face undue hardship by accommodating Bobnar’s request to remain unvaccinated while continuing weekly COVID-19 testing. Notably, the company had approved a similar religious accommodation request from another employee who cited comparable Biblical references and religious practices.

The judge also ruled in Bobnar’s favor regarding his breach of contract claim for unpaid sales performance bonuses. However, the court granted summary judgment to AstraZeneca on Bobnar’s Title VII retaliation and Family Medical Leave Act interference claims.

“We are looking forward to the next phase of this process where a jury will be asked to award monetary damages to compensate Mr. Bobnar,” said Angela Lavin, partner at Wegman Hessler Valore and lead counsel on the case, in an article that appeared in Law360.

Lavin, a partner at Wegman Hessler Valore, along with co-counsel Jay R. Carson and others, successfully argued that their client’s religious convictions were genuine and warranted protection under federal law. Wegman Hessler Valores’s litigation team has a track record of successfully representing individuals in complex employment discrimination matters, particularly those involving constitutional rights and religious freedoms.

The case is Bobnar v. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, case number 1:22-cv-02258, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.

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