Sagar Patel has filed a lawsuit against Oracle America, Inc., alleging violations of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The complaint was lodged in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on December 2, 2025. Patel accuses Oracle America, Inc. of interfering with his FMLA rights and retaliating against him for utilizing these rights.
The case revolves around Patel’s employment as a Support Engineer at Oracle from October 2020 until his termination on September 2, 2025. According to the complaint, Patel had previously taken FMLA leave in 2022 for paternity reasons and informed his employer again in 2025 about his intention to take approximately 14 weeks of paternity leave due to his wife’s pregnancy. His new manager, Aditya Dhote, acknowledged this plan but stated they would “handle it later.” Despite regularly reminding his team and manager about the upcoming leave, Patel was terminated under the pretext of “departmental restructuring” on September 2, 2025. Notably, he was the only employee affected by this so-called restructuring.
Patel asserts that his termination was not related to any performance issues as confirmed by Dhote and that he had no prior disciplinary actions against him. Instead, he claims that Oracle’s actions were retaliatory in nature due to his request for FMLA leave. The lawsuit alleges that Oracle acted with willful disregard for Patel’s protected rights under the FMLA by denying him the use of these rights and subsequently terminating him.
In terms of relief sought from the court, Patel is requesting back pay with interest, front pay, compensatory and punitive damages, liquidated damages, loss of benefits compensation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, as well as any other relief deemed just by the court. He also demands a jury trial to resolve these issues.
Representing Sagar Patel is attorney Chad W. Eisenback from Sulaiman Law Group Ltd., located in Lombard, Illinois. The case has been assigned Case ID: 1:25-cv-14645.
Source: 125cv14645_Sagar_Patel_v_Oracle_America_Complaint_Northern_District_of_Illinois.pdf
