This article presents the case of of Martin Zelnik v. Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) et al. and the ruling of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on the case. Zelnik served on the faculty of FIT from 1969 to 1999, retiring as a full professor of interior design. Zelnik applied for an emeritus status but was denied by FIT. The lower court issued a summary judgment against Zelnik, finding that he had "failed to demonstrate any material adverse change in the terms and conditions of his employment," or any "loss of a benefit." The Second Circuit court affirmed that judgment. The appeals court concluded that while at other institutions "emeritus status apparently carries with it specific and well-defined benefits," the benefits at FIT "carry little or no value and their deprivation therefore may be classified as de minimis." True, most emeriti want an office bigger than a breadbox, a phone line, an Internet connection. Deep down, what they most want is the "E" word and a sense that it means something.