A New Jersey federal judge has denied a motion by Merck & Co. Inc. to dismiss a $250 million gender bias class action by female employees of the pharmaceutical giant who claim they were frozen out of hiring and advancement opportunities.

Siding with the five lead plaintiffs, Judge Joel Pisano of the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey ruled Oct. 8 that it would be premature to dismiss the disparate impact, class and collective action claims against Merck. Read the opinion here: