Wash. Supreme Court published opinion — 1012055.pdf

Citation: Wash. Supreme Court published opinion — 1012055.pdf
Jurisdiction: Washington (state)
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Original Source: https://www.courts.wa.gov/opinions/pdf/1012055.pdf ↗

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at 679). Statistical analysis may be used under both standards. Sw. Fair Hous.

Council, 17 F.4th at 961; Oliver, 106 Wn.2d at 682.

The respondents primarily argue that Dr. Tippett’s report does not

demonstrate “robust causality.” They argue the prima facie elements for the

disparate impact housing discrimination claims under state and federal law—

including the “robust causality” requirement—are the same, relying on Tafoya v.

Human Rts. Comm’n, 177 Wn. App. 216, 311 P.3d 70 (2013).

Tafoya did not so hold, and we reject the invitation to conflate the two

standards. First, Tafoya did not involve a disparate impact claim at all—there, a

tenant filed a complaint under the WLAD when her landlord sexually harassed her.

177 Wn. App. at 221. Since Washington law had not previously addressed sexual

harassment as an unfair practice in real estate transactions under the WLAD, the

40
For the current opinion, go to https://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/wareports/.
State v. City of Sunnyside et al.
No. 101205-5

court looked to federal case law for some guidance. Id. at 224 (“When interpreting

Washington law, we may look to the federal case law when a federal anti-

discrimination law contains the same protections and mandates the same broad

construction.”). The Tafoya court consulted federal cases to the extent it found

housing discrimination laws contemplate broad protections against discrimination in

the terms, conditions, or privileges of renting property, not limited to the transaction

of entering into a lease agreement. Id. at 225. That case did not adopt the “robust

causality” approach.

We have never required “robust causality” under the WLAD, and we decline

to import that language into a WLAD analysis. Instead, we have described the