It’s one thing to be certain, but you can be certain and you can be wrong.
—Senator John F. Kerry during presidential debate with George W. Bush, Sept. 30, 2004
In Capps v. Mondelez Global, 847 F.3d 144 (3d Cir. 2017), the Third Circuit determined that an employer who was both certain and wrong that an employee misused his FMLA leave could escape liability under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The court held that the employer’s “honest belief”—even if mistaken—was sufficient as a matter of law to defeat a FMLA retaliation claim. Accordingly, under the Capps holding, as long as the employer demonstrates that its belief resulted from an honest mistake, the employee cannot support a retaliation claim.
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