Q: Can I file a lawsuit
I, an adult female, was asked to leave the dressing room because another female felt uncomfortable with me there along with a child. I believe after the employee realized I was a female and the child (11) is a male then went on to say it was because of the child being in there with females. I believe it was soley based on my appearance that I have short hair and dress differently than other females and became aware that I was in fact a female then played it off as it was the child that needed to be asked to leave. This was at a major retailer store at a shopping mall. A complaint was filed with the store manager. I also asked for the policy for their store and manager stated there was no policy and it was only based on the employee judgement who they ask to leave.
A: Did you file a report with a supervisor or manager? Do you have the contact information of the customer that requested you be removed? These type of cases are difficult to prove discrimination without much more information. The employee could have any number of reasons to ask you to leave, including covid19, i.e. too many people in the dressing room. Also, even if you have a case, I'm not sure you'd be able to actually recover anything in court. I would not recommend pursuing this unless there are more detailed facts we don't know about.
A:
Discrimination at business establishments based on a protected status is prohibited by the Unruh Civil rights act, Civil Code 51 et seq. You don't say how old this male child in the female dressing room is. If under 4, you probably have a case, if the child is 14, then probably not. If you suffered discrimination due to gender identity, sexual preference or gender, you would have a case and could receive a statutory penalty up to $4000 plus attorney's fees. You should discuss the particulars with an attorney in your area specializing in Civil Rights or Discrimination in employment or business. You can also file a complaint with the DFEH, online.
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Louis George Fazzi and Yelena Gurevich agree with this answer
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