For a quick study on how much weight establishing pretext carries, review the competing instructions offered in Williams v. Eau Claire Public Schools (6th Cir. 2/10/05) [pdf].
The bottom line from the Court:
In sum, because William's proposed instructions do not inform the jury that in order to return a verdict in her favor it must not only find Eau Claire’s articulated reason false, but it must also believe Williams’s claim that Eau Claire was in fact motivated by considerations of gender, Williams’s instructions are not a correct statement of the law.
Never forget, the ultimate issue is -- has the plaintiff established intentional discrimination.
