Lockley v. DEPT. OF CORRECTIONS

The opinion of the Court was delivered by

PORITZ, C.J.

This Court has held that a plaintiff who seeks punitive damages based on an alleged violation of the Law Against Discrimination (LAD), N.J.S.A 10:5-1 to -49, by a public or private entity must prove that upper level management acted in such manner as to warrant the imposition of those damages. This case presents two questions: whether the trial court’s instructions (1) sufficiently informed the jury in respect of the upper level management determination, and (2) properly described the considerations relevant to the calculation of a punitive…