Attorney Jonathan Ian Nirenberg's Legal Cases

Employment and labor

Cole v. Jersey City Medical Center

Mar 29, 2012

OUTCOME: Reversed decision granting summary judgment to employer

Karen Cole alleged Jersey City Medical Center and Liberty Anesthesia Associates, LLC’s decision to terminate her employment constituted retaliation in violation of the Conscientious Employee Protection ... Act and disability discrimination in violation of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. After Ms. Cole settled her claims against Jersey City, and on the eve of trial, Liberty sought to compel arbitration. The trial court dismissed her case. But the Appellate Division reversed, ruling that Jersey City waived its right to compel arbitration by actively participating in the litigation for 20 months before it sought to compel arbitration.

Employment and labor

Padilla v. Berkeley Educational Services of New Jersey, Inc.

Dec 05, 2005

OUTCOME: Jury Verdict Affirmed on Appeal

Prior to the appeal, a jury had determined that Berkeley Educational Services of New Jersey had discriminated against its employee, Ms. Padilla, because she was pregnant. However, due to an error in th ... e jury verdict sheet, the trial judge did not permit allow the jury to award any damages to Ms. Padilla. The Appellate Division sent the case back to the trial court so a jury could award Ms. Padilla damages for her lost wages and benefits, her emotional distress, and her attorney's fees. Importantly, the appellate court recognized that an employee does not need to have a doctor or expert witness testify to recover emotional distress under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination.

Discrimination

Myers v. AT&T

Sep 09, 2005

OUTCOME: Reversed and Remanded for Trial

In this disability discrimination case, the trial court found that the plaintiff, Lois Myers, did not have enough evidence of discrimination for a jury to even consider whether AT&T fired her because s ... he was a survivor of ovarian cancer. The trial court dismissed Ms. Myers' case even though her Myers' immediate supervisor admitted she lowered Ms. Myers' performance rating because she perceived that, as a cancer survivor, Ms. Myers was not working as hard as her non-disabled coworker. It was also undisputed that AT&T selected Ms. Myers to be included in a mass layoff because of her lowered performance rating. On appeal, the New Jersey Appellate Division that Ms. Myers was entitled to her day in court. In fact, the Court found that the admission by Ms. Myers' supervisor was "direct evidence" of discrimination, and therefore instead of Ms. Myers having to prove that AT&T fired her because of her disability, the company would had the burden to prove that it would have fired Ms. Myers even if she never had cancer. The Myers decision is an extremely important since it makes it significantly easier for an employee to place the burden of proof on the employer in discrimination cases under New Jersey law.

Discrimination

Zive v. Stanley Roberts, Inc.

Feb 24, 2005

OUTCOME: New Jersey Supreme Court Affirmed Jury Verdict

The New Jersey Supreme Court's opinion substantially lower the threshold for a victim of discrimination to have his case decided by a jury. After a jury found that Stanley Roberts fired Stewart Zive b ... ecause he was disabled after he suffered a stroke, the company unsuccessfully attempted to convince the Appellate Division to reverse the decision. The company again appealed, this time to the New Jersey Supreme Court. The Supreme Court not only denied the appeal, but looked carefully at the elements an employee has to prove before a case can go to a jury. Ultimately, the New Jersey Supreme Court recognized that the plaintiff has a minimal burden before he is entitled to a trial, and essentially ruled that a jury should be able to decide whether discrimination made a difference in the employer's decision so long as the facts are not inconsistent with the possibility of discrimination.

Civil rights

Brennan v. Norton

Dec 05, 2003

OUTCOME: Reversed and Remanded

In this federal civil rights case, Firefighter William J. Brennan was awarded a substantial jury verdict against the Township of Teaneck and numerous of its employees for violating his First Amendment ... rights. On appeal, the defendants sought to reverse the jury's verdict, and Mr. Brennan convinced the court to send the case back to the district court to determine whether the defendants had retaliated against Mr. Brennan's rights in violation of the Conscientious Employee Protection Act ("CEPA"), even though he had not sent a "notice of claim" to Teaneck. Filing a notice of claim is a legal prerequisite to bringing a personal injury lawsuit against the state or local government. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals sent the case back to the District Court, concluding that CEPA is a civil rights statute, not a personal injury law. As a result, the Court held that plaintiffs do not need to send a "notice of claim" before bringing a whistleblower claim against the government under CEPA.

Discrimination

Muller v. Exxon Research & Engineering Co.

Dec 17, 2001

OUTCOME: Affirmed.

Disability discrimination claim.

Employment and labor

Winters v. North Hudson Regional Fire & Rescue

Sep 13, 1913

OUTCOME: Dismissed because the employee had previously lost his related claims through the New Jersey Civil Service Commission

Civil rights claim brought by a Firefighter alleging retaliation in violation of the First Amendment, the Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA) and the New Jersey Civil Rights Act.

Jonathan Ian Nirenberg's Legal Cases (7)

Cole v. Jersey City Medical Center

Padilla v. Berkeley Educational Services of New Jersey, Inc.

Myers v. AT&T

Zive v. Stanley Roberts, Inc.

Brennan v. Norton

Muller v. Exxon Research & Engineering Co.

Winters v. North Hudson Regional Fire & Rescue