⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

The Fifth Circuit hears a retaliation dispute between ExxonMobil and its employee, Zoe Barinaga. An ExxonMobil executive, Barinaga complained to human resources about a colleague's conduct. She says the company then blocked her path to the Baytown Chemical Plant Manager job and withheld increases in her classification level, a separate form of promotion. ExxonMobil says its decisions reflected experience, performance and business needs, not retaliation. The district court dismissed her claims on summary judgment, without a trial. Jakki Hansen will ask the court to revive her retaliation claims, contending that the company's own records support her account. The appeal also asks whether her agency complaints timely covered the disputed promotion decisions. The question is whether the record contains enough evidence for a jury, not whether the appeal judges would have made different promotion choices.

Barinaga v. ExxonMobil (No. 25-20476) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, argued October 6, 2026.