Legal Definitions - similarly situated

Definition: Similarly situated refers to a group of people who are alike in all relevant ways to another group for a specific decision or issue. This term is commonly used in cases of discrimination where the plaintiff may try to show that they were treated differently from others who were similarly situated except for the alleged basis of discrimination.

For example, in a case where a restaurant is accused of discriminating against a group of Asian American patrons, the court may consider whether the white group of patrons was similarly situated to the Asian American group. If the restaurant seated the white group before the Asian American group, even though the Asian American group arrived earlier, the court may find that the two groups were not similarly situated because the white group was significantly smaller, which is a significant factor in restaurant seating.

In another example, in a case where employees allege employment discrimination under Title VII, the court may consider whether they are similarly situated to other employees who allegedly did not suffer from such discrimination. The court may require a showing that they hold the same job or responsibilities, that they share the same supervisor or have their employment status determined by the same person, and have essentially comparable violation histories.

These examples illustrate how the term "similarly situated" is used to determine whether two groups of people are alike in all relevant ways for a specific decision or issue. In both cases, the court considers various factors to determine whether the two groups are comparable and whether discrimination has occurred.