‘OK Boomer’ just made its Supreme Court debut. But why was it brought up?

The newest Generation Z comeback “OK Boomer” found its way to the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

The court was hearing a case about federal employees and unlawful age discrimination when Chief Justice John Roberts asked whether someone could take legal action if a hiring person, presumably younger, used the phrase toward an applicant.

Laughter broke out, CNN reported, as this was likely the first time “OK Boomer” was heard in the historic courtroom.

Roman Martinez, the lawyer at the podium, responded that the phrase could qualify.

“Well, if the speech in the workplace … calling someone ‘Boomer’ or saying unflattering things about them in age, when considering them for a position, then yes of course,” he said, according to CNN.

Vogue reported “OK Boomer” grew in popularity last year in response to a video of an older man criticizing Gen Z and millennials for having Peter Pan Syndrome. Teens and young adults now use the phrase regularly in social media in response to Baby Boomers, defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as people born between mid-1946 and mid-1964.

Elizabeth Vennum, business and employment attorney at Vennum PLC in Charlotte, North Carolina, previously told McClatchy that she doubted the phrase could rise to the level of discrimination.

“Courts consider isolated negative comments, or ‘stray remarks’ as part of everyday life, and part of any workplace,” she said.

Still, when 64-year-old Roberts asked the lawyer again whether calling someone a “Boomer” and considering them for a position is actionable, Martinez said yes.

“If the decision makers are sitting around the table and they say, ‘we’ve got Candidate A who’s 35’ and ‘we’ve got Candidate B who’s 55 and is a Boomer’ -- and is probably tired and you know, doesn’t have a lot of computer skills, I think that absolutely would be actionable,” Martinez said, according to CNN.

This story was originally published January 15, 2020 at 5:24 PM.