In a recent unpublished opinion, New Jersey’s Appellate Division found a teacher’s objection that his school did not sufficiently discipline a student for threatening to shoot another student could be protected from retaliation by the Conscientious Employee Protection Act (“CEPA”). CEPA is a broad New Jersey whistleblower law that prohibits…
Articles Posted in Whistleblower
Court Recognizes New Jersey Law Against Discrimination’s Broad Definition of Disability
In a recent unpublished decision, New Jersey’s Appellate Division make it clear that an employee does not have to have a severe or permanent impairment to have a viable disability discrimination to be protected by the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (“LAD”). The case was filed by Bart Algozzini, who…
Timing Between Protected Activity and Adverse Employment Action Supports Whistleblower Claim
A recent unpublished opinion from New Jersey’s Appellate Division overturned a trial court decision dismissing his whistleblower claim under the Conscientious Employee Protection Act (“CEPA”). The case serves as a reminder that close timing between a legally-protected activity and an adverse employment action can be powerful evidence to support a…
Court Reinstates Employee’s Retaliation Lawsuit, Finding Employer Could Have Identified Her as Anonymous Whistleblower
A new decision from New Jersey’s Appellate Division recognizes that an employer can be liable for retaliating against an employee who filed an anonymous whistleblower complaint if the evidence supports the inference that it could have realized she was the one who filed the complaint. For 14 years, Carol Smith…
Resigning to Avoid Participating in Illegal Activity Can Be Protected Under CEPA
A recent decision from the New Jersey Appellate Division decision recognizes that, under the right circumstances an employee can be protected by the Conscientious Employee Protection Act (“CEPA”) when she resigns because she is not willing to participate in her employer’s illegal conduct. CEPA is New Jersey’s whistleblower law, which…
Appellate Division Reinstates Employee’s Whistleblower Claim
In a recent opinion, New Jersey’s Appellate Division reinstated Margaret Gatham’s whistleblower claim against Care One Management, LLC, its Executive Vice President, Elizabeth Straus, and its Deputy General Counsel, Thomas A. McKinney. Ms. Gatham worked for Care One from 2005 until she resigned in July 2012. In 2015, Care One’s…
Employer Too Late to Compel Arbitration in Whistleblower Lawsuit
In a recent employment law case, New Jersey’s Appellate Division ruled that an employer had waived its right to compel arbitration by waiting 10 months before it sought to do so. Tevin Welcome worked as a van driver for Huffmaster, Inc. Before Huffmaster hired him, Mr. Welcome completed an online…
New York State Finally Enacts Broad Whistleblower Law
On October 28, 2021, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed in law an amendment to New York’s Whistleblower law, Labor Law Sections 740 and 741. Prior to this amendment, New York’s Whistleblower Law has been very narrow and provided very limited protection. That will change when the amendment goes into…
New Jersey Law Prohibits Retaliation Against Employee Who Refused to Lie in Sexual Harassment Lawsuit
Last week, the New Jersey’s Appellate Decision recognized that an employer cannot retaliate against an employee because he refused to lie to support the company defend against another employee’s sexual harassment lawsuit. While that might seem obvious, the twist is that the employee alleging retaliation did not even know the…
Discrimination and Retaliation Claims During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Our New Jersey employment lawyers understand that times are extremely difficult for pretty much everyone right now. But, fortunately, you still have significant rights in the workplace. Being sheltered in place or quarantined and having to engage in social distancing have become the new normal. The economy has taken an…