Legal Definitions - comparator

In legal contexts, a comparator refers to a person, group, or entity used as a standard for comparison to determine if there has been unfair treatment, discrimination, or a deviation from established norms. It is the benchmark against which another situation or individual is measured to highlight similarities or, more often, significant differences that may indicate a legal wrong.

• Example 1: Employment Discrimination (Promotion)

  A highly qualified female employee believes she was unfairly denied a promotion to a senior management position, which was instead given to a male colleague with less experience and fewer qualifications. In this scenario, the male colleague who received the promotion would be the comparator. The female employee would present evidence comparing her qualifications, experience, and performance reviews to those of her male colleague to demonstrate that she was equally or more qualified, suggesting that gender may have played an unlawful role in the promotion decision.

• Example 2: Fair Lending Practices

  A small business owner from a minority group applies for a business loan and is offered terms (e.g., a higher interest rate, shorter repayment period) that seem unusually unfavorable. The owner suspects discriminatory lending practices. To support this claim, they might identify another small business of similar size, financial health, and industry, owned by someone from a majority group, that received a loan with significantly better terms from the same bank. This other business would serve as the comparator, allowing the owner to highlight the disparity in treatment.

• Example 3: Accessibility in Public Services

  An advocacy group for individuals with disabilities files a complaint against a city, alleging that a newly renovated public library lacks adequate accessibility features, such as ramps, automatic doors, and accessible restrooms. To strengthen their case, the group might point to other public libraries in neighboring cities, or even other recently renovated public buildings within the same city, that successfully incorporated these features. These other accessible facilities would function as comparators, demonstrating that providing such features is feasible and standard practice, thereby highlighting the deficiency in the new library's design.