In a time where it seems like more and more people are getting lawsuit-happy, sexual harassment cases are rapidly rising to the forefront. Left and right, people are saying that they have been victims of sexual harassment by a family member or in the workplace. While many of these cases have some merit to them, there are a few that do not. Before you attempt to sue anybody for sexual harassment, you first need to know exactly what sexual harassment legally looks like so that you can work with a lawyer who specializes in these cases to determine if you are able to make a case against someone or not. Here are some examples of things that are sexual harassment and things that are not:

Examples of Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment in and of itself has many different aspects. While it is not considered sexual harassment for a man to tell a woman she looks "hot" or sexy, it may be harassment if he continues to make these comments and then makes physical advances against her. The same is true if a woman does this to a man. If someone posts on your social media page extremely graphic details of things they want to do with you in the bedroom, that can also be considered sexual harassment if they are not your spouse, partner, or significant other. If someone keeps trying to touch you after you've already asked them not to touch you, or if they make suggestive comments about the opposite sex in general, or a group of people in your workplace, that might be considered sexual harassment.

What is Not Sexual Harassment

Some people consider certain comments to be sexually-harassing just because the comment was directed at them by a member of the opposite sex, but that does not necessarily mean that it was sexual in nature. For instance, if someone tells a member of the opposite sex, "you look nice today," that's not a sexually harassing comment if nothing further comes from that statement. At that point, that's someone simply stating that the person being complimented looks good in the outfit they chose. Asking someone what they are doing after work may or may not be considered sexual harassment. If one person is simply curious about the other person's plans or would like to invite them out for drinks, that may be considered perfectly innocent in the eyes of the law. In that instance, it really depends on the situation and what is being said, and what actions follow whatever was said.

Sometimes, people go overboard on their lawsuits, trying to sue for as much money as they can, or claiming sexual harassment when a certain situation really isn't harassment at all. If you want to save yourself legal fees and potentially keep yourself out of trouble for falsely accusing someone, then know what is and isn't considered sexual harassment before you try to make a case against another person. Talk to experts like Campbell, Dille, Barnett & Smith, P.L.L.C., for more information.

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