Lerario v. NewYork-Presbyterian/Queens

MEMORANDUM OPINION & ORDER Dr. Mackenzie Lerario, a vascular neurologist and a transgender woman, alleges that the defendants — NewYork-Presbyterian/Queens (“NYP”), Cornell University (“Cornell”), and Dr. Matthew Fink — discriminated and retaliated against Dr. Lerario and created a hostile work environment when Dr. Lerario was transitioning from male to female in 2019 and early 2020. In August 2020, while on long-term disability leave from Cornell, Dr. Lerario filed this action. ECF No. 1.¹ Dr. Lerario, who remains an inactive employee of Cornell, now moves pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65 for a preliminary injunction requiring Cornell to restore Dr. Lerario to active employment status pending the conclusion of this litigation and “to provide a period of retraining and supervision to ensure their skills are consistent with the skills required of physicians in their field at Weill Cornell, until this Court enters final judgment.” ECF No. 112. Because Dr. Lerario has not shown entitlement to the “extraordinary remedy” of a preliminary injunction, Monserrate v. New York State Senate, 599 F.3d 148, 154 (2d Cir. 2010), the motion for a preliminary injunction is denied. I. A. The following facts, drawn from the complaint and the parties’ affidavits on this motion, constitute the Court’s findings of fact. See Park Irmat Drug Corp. v. Optumrx, Inc., 152 F. Supp. 3d 127, 132 (S.D.N.Y. 2016) (“In deciding a motion for preliminary injunction, a court may consider the entire record including affidavits and other hearsay evidence.”).² Dr. Lerario is a board-certified neurologist and vascular neurologist. Lerario Decl., ECF No. 114, 37. Dr. Lerario is an expert in the research, development, and operation of mobile stroke treatment units (“MSTUs”), which provide immediate, specialized care to stroke victims. Id.

37-40, 65-68. After earning a medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania Medical School in 2010, Dr. Lerario completed an internship, residency, and vascular neurology fellowship at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Id.