N.J. Supreme Court Confirms Schalk's Significant Victory in Sexual Orientation Discrimination Claim
Headlining the cover of the August 18, 2008 New Jersey Law Journal, Charles Z. Schalk, Esq. scored another significant victory before the Appellate Division in the matter of Kwiatkowski v. Merrill Lynch, et al. On December 12, 2008, the New Jersey Court confirmed this decision by formally denying the defendants' petition for certification.
In this case, the Appellate Division ruled that a single anti-gay slur was sufficient to establish hostile work environment discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Furthermore, the Appellate Division established new law in the area of liablility of an immediate supervisor known in some circles as subordinate bias or "cat's paw" which applies in situations where a supervisor who lacks decision-making power uses a dupe to trigger a negative action against an employee. Under this doctrine, a company may be held liable for the discriminatory motives of a supervisor even if the ultimate decision-maker is unaware of them.
In this case, the Appellate Division ruled that a single anti-gay slur was sufficient to establish hostile work environment discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Furthermore, the Appellate Division established new law in the area of liablility of an immediate supervisor known in some circles as subordinate bias or "cat's paw" which applies in situations where a supervisor who lacks decision-making power uses a dupe to trigger a negative action against an employee. Under this doctrine, a company may be held liable for the discriminatory motives of a supervisor even if the ultimate decision-maker is unaware of them.