Kaukab Khan v. Crossover Market, LLC; Trilogy, Inc.

El Paso, Texas pro se Plaintiff without a lawyer field a civil rights claimed against the Defendants.



laintiff-Appellant Kaukab Khan, an Indian national, sued Defendant-Appellee Crossover Market, a staffing firm which recruits remote workers on behalf of other companies, including Defendant-Appellee Trilogy. In April 2025, Khan applied for a remote job as a research analyst at Trilogy. According to Khan, despite being qualified for the position, his application was rejected after the job listing was altered to require that applicants live in certain time zones to facilitate working with Americans. This requirement excluded Khan, who resides in India.



Title VII cannot apply to Khan, as he is a foreign citizen living abroad. See 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(f) (Title VII does not apply to employees overseas unless they are American citizens); Mota v. Univ. of Tex. Hou. Health Sci. Ctr., 261 F.3d 512, 524 n.34 (5th Cir. 2001) ("Title VII does not govern aliens employed outside the United States.”). Nor may Khan assert a retaliation claim under Title VII, as he was never employed by either of the Defendants. See 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(f). Because Khan cannot invoke the protections of Title VII, the district court did not abuse its discretion in

dismissing the complaint with prejudice as frivolous.

Affirmed