Wal-Mart facing class action discrimination suit

Looks like Wal-Mart had a bad day in court. From The New York Times:

Wal-Mart’s efforts to block the nation’s largest sex discrimination lawsuit suffered a big setback yesterday when a federal appeals court in San Francisco ruled that the case should proceed as a class action.

In a 2-to-1 ruling, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected Wal-Mart’s argument that the lawsuit, which involves at least 1.5 million current and former women employees, was too unwieldy to handle in a single case.

Legal specialists said the ruling would increase pressure on Wal-Mart Stores to settle the case, in which the retailer is accused of discrimination in pay and promotions. Wal-Mart executives said they would appeal, voicing confidence that the decision would be overturned.

It's worth noting that Wal-Mart intends to ask the panel to reconsider its ruling, according to the article, and may ask the entire 9th Circuit panel to review the case.

Still, it's a notable victory and a sign that Wal-Mart may eventually be forced to clean up its act - since it won't do so on its own.