New Expansion of Discrimination/Sexual Harassment Law
In an interesting new development, the Appellate Division of New Jersey, in the matter of Cerdeira v. Martindale Hubbell, Appellate Division A-5855-06T1 (September 18, 2008) has expanded liability for discrimination in situations where: (a) an employee is subjected to discrimination/harassment by a co-worker (as opposed to a supervisor); and (b) the employer does not have an effective policy for employees to use in reporting harassment. Relying on a form of negligent liability which has previously only been recognized in federal court, the Appellate Division has now established that in New Jersey state courts, under the circumstances set forth above, there can be liability for a company. This new form of liability only underscores the need for employers in New Jersey to have a clear written policy on how employees are to report incidents of discrimination and harassment to their company.
