Nonemployer Individuals May Not Be Held Personally Liable Under California’s FEHA For Their Role In Retaliation
The California Supreme Court has held, in a 4-3 opinion, that the employer may be held liable for retaliation under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), but nonemployer individuals may not be held personally liable under FEHA for their role in that retaliation. Accordingly, the high court reversed a Court of Appeal judgment affirming a jury verdict awarding $155,000 in compensatory damages against a supervisor in resolution of an employee's retaliation claim under FEHA.
Although FEHA prohibits
retaliation by "any employer, labor organization, employment agency, or person,"
the high court looked beyond that language to the legislative history of the
FEHA and policy considerations in analyzing its meaning. The court concluded
that the rationale for not holding individuals personally liable for
discrimination claims under FEHA applies equally to retaliation claims. The
majority justices reasoned that imposing liability on individual supervisory
employees would do little to enhance the ability of victims of discrimination to
recover monetary damages, while it could reasonably be expected to severely
impair the exercise of supervisory judgment. Three justices dissented, opining
that the express language of FEHA unambiguously imposes individual liability on
any "person" who retaliates.
Jones v. Lodge At
Torrey Pines Partnership