Married man is suing for date; EHARMONY REFUSES HIM UNTIL DIVORCE

Mercury News ^ | 3/27

[iPod Shuffle]

Posted on Mon, Mar. 27, 2006

Married man is suing for date

EHARMONY REFUSES HIM UNTIL DIVORCE

Mercury News

John Claassen wants a date so badly he's suing for one.

He's taking eHarmony.com to court, because the popular online matchmaker refused to find him the perfect mate.

Why? Because he is married.

Technically, Claassen says, he is legally separated. But that's not good enough for eHarmony, which says it is in the business of matching singles ``free of relationship commitments.'' That puts him in cyber-dating limbo.

``Most people don't file a suit to get a date,'' Claassen said Friday after filing a civil rights suit last week in Alameda County Superior Court. ``If I had my druthers, I'd be divorced by now. I'm emotionally in a different state than I am legally,'' the 36-year-old Emeryville lawyer said.

Claassen alleges eHarmony is discriminating against him on the basis of his marital status. He and his wife of eight years separated last May, and he expects the divorce to be final within two months. When he reached marital status on eHarmony's online compatibility profile, he responded truthfully: ``legally separated.''

But eHarmony says its policy is clear: No marrieds need apply.

Citing California civil code, section 51, Claassen alleges eHarmony, based in Pasadena, is breaking state law because it is denying him access to its matching service based on marital status. He seeks $12,000 in civil penalties.

[NYpeanut]

Congratulations, but been there, done that. Here's to your new life!

[SuzyQue]

I had to go look up the federal laws to see if married/not married is a protected status.  Apparently not, if you apply the same measure to both men and women.

TITLE VII - CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964 (42 USC 2000e AND 12102 ET. SEQ.)

Title VII is the primary federal employment antidiscrimination legislation. It applies only to employment except concerning individuals with disabilities.

PROTECTED GROUPS:

•Race

•Color

•Religion

•Gender (including pregnancy and marital status if applied only to one sex)

•National origin or ancestry

•Disability

Discrimination           

Protected Groups (Discrimination)

Age Discrimination
AIDS/Disease
Civil Rights
Disabilities (ADA)
National Origin Discrimination
Racial Discrimination
Religious Discrimination
Sexual Orientation Discrimination
Vietnam Vets/Veterans

http://www.employeradvice.com/public/department146.cfm

[mbraynard]

Like I said - state law.

Buried in the list of the 47 bills signed into law was AB 1400, a bill which could have a major impact on businesses and consumers alike. Called "The Civil Rights Act of 2005," the new law adds "marital status" to the Unruh Civil Rights Act -- a California statute which prohibits any business establishment of any kind whatsoever from engaging in discriminatory business practices.

There are a lot of other states out there that have marital status protected.

[SuzyQue]

Thanks for the info.