A Caucasian man has won a $10 million lawsuit after he claims he was fired from his job to make way for two women.
David Duvall was working as a senior vice president for marketing and communications by Novant Health Inc. when he alleged he was let go 'without prior warning' in 2018, despite 'performing at a high level and exceeding the performance expectations'.
His legal complaint highlighted how, under a normal severance package, he would get receive 30 days' notice if he was to be terminated.
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However in his lawsuit, he claims he was ordered off the North Carolina-based not-for-profit site without an explanation about why the mandated 'normal circumstances' did not apply.
Duvall later found out that he had been replaced by two women, which he alleged was 'for the express purpose of increasing gender and racial diversity among Novant executives'.
While he states the women were qualified for the job, he questioned why he was so abruptly let go.
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After getting in touch with attorney, Luke Largess, the pair set course for a discrimination lawsuit that was based around sex and race.
Their lawsuit stated: "Defendant's termination of Plaintiff on account of his race and sex directly violated this express public policy of the State of North Carolina.
"Thus, the termination of Plaintiff was wrongful and unlawful under state law."
The tricky part in the legal challenge was being able to prove that Novant Health Inc. got rid of Duvall solely on the basis of a diversity initiative.
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A jury eventually sided with Duvall's complaint and agreed that the company would not have made the same decision to terminate him if it wasn't for his race and sex.
Duvall's attorney, Luke Largess, said: "The jury learned that Duvall was a strong advocate of diversity and inclusion at Novant; he sat on an executive committee that supported the initiative and his team provide marketing for the program.
"That was one irony in his termination, his belief in Diversity and Inclusion.
"But such programs have to be run lawfully. We believe the punitive damages award was a message that an employer cannot terminate and replace employees simply based on their race or gender in order to achieve targets for greater diversity in the workforce.
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"It is plainly unlawful and harmful and that was obvious to the jury."
As part of the lawsuit, the judge awarded David Duvall $10 million.
Novant Health Inc's Megan Rivers told CNN the company is considering launching an appeal of the verdict and will consider all other options.
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