Iowa Supreme Court Reconsiders Opinion Of The Nelson v. Knight Case

James M. Knight and Melissa Nelson

The Iowa Supreme Court decided to reconsider the Nelson v. Knight case and will most likely render a different opinion.

By H. Nelson Goodson

July 2, 2013

Des Moines, Iowa - The Iowa Supreme Court announced it had vacated the prior ruling and will reconsider its opinion in the case of Melissa Nelson v. James M. Knight in which the justices had ruled that Knight had the right to fire Nelson to prevent a divorce from his wife. Knight, a dentist acted properly when he terminated Nelson, 32, for finding her "irresistibly attractive." The prior appeal ruling had exhausted further appeals after three years of legal challenges against Nelson's unjust termination.

Nelson filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against Knight after he was pressured by his wife to fire her for just being an attractive woman. Knight's wife felt threaten that her marriage would be dissolved after she discovered that her husband had sent text massages to Nelson. Knight confessed to his wife that he indeed found Nelson irresistibly attractive.

Nelson is married and has two children. Neither Knight or Nelson had ever engaged in any extramarital activity between them. He intimately just found her attractive.

The all male Iowa Supreme Court ruling set precedent that any woman can get terminated in the state for just being attractive to preserve the best interests of a marriage. The case drew national criticism for its ruling. 

Especially, the marriage of a male boss who finds his employee attractive even, if they never engaged in any type of advances resulting in an affair, according to the Iowa Supreme Court ruling.