A federal judge in Brooklyn has ruled that New York City’s reliance from 1999 to 2007 on two written firefighter exams “with discriminatory effects” violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Eastern District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis concluded that the use of the two tests, officially known as Written Examinations 7029 and 2043, disparately impacted blacks and Hispanics, contributing to their “extraordinarily low” representation within the New York City Fire Department.