Doe v. City of New York (Second Circuit Court 1994)
1st January 1994, 12:00 pm
Doe filed a claim against Delta Airlines with the City of New York Commission on Human Rights claiming that Delta discriminated against him based on its suspicion of his HIV status. The parties reached a settlement agreement, which included a confidentiality clause stating that Delta and the Commission would not disclose Doe’s name in connection with this claim. Despite the confidentiality clause the Commission issued a press release disclosing the terms of the agreement. Though his name was not disclosed in the press release, Doe claimed that there was sufficient identifying detail to alert his colleagues of his HIV status. Doe challenged the disclosure as a violation of his right to privacy. The lower court dismissed Doe’s challenge. Doe appealed.

On appeal, the Circuit Court reversed the lower court’s decision, holding that Doe had a constitutional right to privacy regarding his HIV status and that that right was not waived by his bringing a discrimination complaint to the Commission. The Court noted that the right to confidentiality to personal medical information is especially important with regards to HIV/Aids because of the level of stigma attached to it. The Court remanded the case back to the lower court to determine whether this invasion of Doe’s privacy right was outweighed by the Commission’s interest in issuing the press release.

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