Landmark Civil Rights Case In Michigan Ends In Settlement

MICHIGAN — A settlement has been reached in a lawsuit that garnered national attention after it resulted in a transgender person having a civil rights case heard by the U.S. Supreme Court for the first time.

The estate of Aimee Stephens and the Metro Detroit funeral have reached a settlement that includes a $130,000 payment to the estate including $63,724 in back pay with interest and $66,276 in damages, according to The Detroit News. Another stipulation includes a $120,000 payment to the ACLU Foundation for costs and plaintiff attorney fees.

The settlement was signed off by U.S. District Court Judge Sean Cox on Monday.

Stephens, who had worked for nearly six years as a funeral director at R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes when she was fired for being a transgender woman, according to previous reports by the ACLU, died in May. She was 59.

Related: Aimee Stephens, Plaintiff In Transgender Civil Rights Case, Dies

The Supreme Court ruled in June that federal law prohibits employment discrimination based on gender identity, but Stephens did not live to hear the court's ruling.