On January 11, 2024, Coherent Economics’ client Ramtin Sabet, formerly a police officer with the North Chicago Police Department (“NCPD”), reached a $475,000 settlement with the city of North Chicago in long-running civil-rights litigation dating back to 2016.

Mr. Sabet, who immigrated to the United States from Iran in 1997 and is a practicing Muslim, alleged that during his time as an officer for the NCPD from 2007 to 2017 he was subjected to pervasive harassment by other officers, including his supervisors, due to his national origin and religion. Shortly after filing a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission relating to the alleged ongoing harassment, the NCPD placed Mr. Sabet on leave, opened an investigation into his conduct, and ultimately terminated his employment. Mr. Sabet filed suit in federal court in November of 2016 alleging a hostile work environment, discrimination, and retaliation by the NCPD.

Working on a pro bono basis, a team at Coherent computed economic damages sustained by Mr. Sabet resulting from his alleged wrongful termination, and Coherent President Laurel Van Allen submitted an expert report and testified at deposition. The matter settled on the eve of trial. In announcing the settlement, Phil Robertson, the Litigation Director for CAIR-Chicago who represented Mr. Sabet, stated “[t]his is a tremendous win for the community in the future. It shows that this type of bullying and harassment at work will not be permitted, condoned, or pushed quietly under the rug, regardless of your demographic.”

Laurel Van Allen was supported by a team at Coherent including Kelsey Shaw, Seb Peinado, Jenna Gonzales, and Zach Frankel.