Employment Litigation
Discrimination Claims
A valid comparator shares the same supervisor, is subject to the same standards, and engaged in comparable conduct without differentiating circumstances. Courts vary in how strictly similarity is assessed.
It supports both the prima facie case and pretext.
Alternative Names:
Similarly Situated Comparator|Comparator Analysis
Why it Matters?
Establishing that the proposed comparator differed in a material respect is the most efficient defense, since a comparator who reported to a different supervisor, had a cleaner disciplinary history, or engaged in less serious conduct does not support the inference. Consistent discipline documentation across the workforce is what makes that showing available. Employers with inconsistent enforcement supply the comparators plaintiffs need.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
What makes a comparator invalid?
What makes the defense available?
