With the advent of the MeToo Movement, sexual harassment is a topic that has gained a significant level of interest in a relatively short amount of time. Most would say that the addressing of that topic is long overdue since so many people are victims of harassment. In the past, many of those victims did not report the crimes perpetrated against them or were ignored and dismissed when they did.
Fortunately, times seem to be changing, but one big question that still pervades the discussion of this subject is just what is considered harassment. The answer varies from state to state, but this article is focused on what is legally considered to be harassment in California. If you are a victim of harassment, then you should contact a Los Angeles sexual harassment lawyer to discuss your legal options.
Civil Harassment
Under California law, there are many different acts that fall under the umbrella of civil harassment. Civil harassment is when someone receives abuse, threats of abuse, or harassment by someone they have not dated and with whom they do not have a close family relationship. An example of such a person would be a roommate or a neighbor. Examples of harassment are as follows.
Assault and/or Battery
The legal definition of assault is the intent to cause harm to someone else, an example would be if a person threw a punch at someone and missed. Battery is the intentional causing of harm to someone else, in this case, it would be if someone threw a punch at someone else and connected.
Stalking
This is the repeated following, harassing, or agitating of someone by threatening their safety, or the safety of their family members. In this case, repeated means more than twice. An example is if someone repeatedly follows you or makes unwanted contact with you for the sole purpose of causing anxiety and fear.
Credible Threat of Violence
This is when someone makes a statement that reasonably makes you fear for the safety of you or your family. An example is if someone threatens to shoot you if you refuse to speak to them and you know that they own a gun.
Repeated Actions Meant to Cause Emotional Distress, Annoyance, or Harassment
These are actions that do not serve any legitimate purpose and are only intended to cause emotional distress. An example would be receiving repeated, unwanted, and upsetting emails or text messages.
Workplace Harassment
The workplace can be one of the more harrowing places to deal with harassment because of the close proximity of everyone involved. Furthermore, there may be uncomfortable power dynamics at play as well. These are just some of the kinds of workplace harassment.
Sexual Harassment
This is harassment that is sexual in nature and can involve unwanted advances, suggestive or lewd comments, and inappropriate touching.
Quid Pro Quo Harassment
Quid pro quo is a Latin phrase meaning this for that. It is when someone offers an employee a promotion or some other benefit that is contingent on them engaging in some kind of sexual conduct.
Discriminatory Harassment
This is when someone suffers verbal, psychological, or physical abuse because their co-workers believe them to be inferior in some way. People can suffer discrimination because of race, gender, age, religion, disability, or sexual orientation.
The Legal Options for Dealing With Harassment
In the case of civil harassment, the victim can get a restraining order to prevent the harasser from coming into contact with them. That includes both personal and electronic contact. For workplace harassment, the victim should immediately go to management since many companies have policies that cover harassment. If the harassment problem cannot be resolved then the victim can take civil action, but only after consulting with a lawyer that is an expert in harassment.
