Thu, 05/20/2021
Your state may offer big damages for emotional distress in discrimination and whistleblower cases. In a recent example, the Oregon Supreme Court held that an Oregon statute limiting emotional distress damages for personal injury does not limit a worker’s recovery for emotional distress damages under the state’s anti-discrimination and whistleblower law.
In Zweizig v. Rote and Northwest Direct Teleservices, Inc., the Plaintiff initially filed a lawsuit in the federal district court in Oregon, alleging that the corporate defendants had retaliated against him and that defendant Timothy C. Rote had aided and abetted the corporations in violation of Oregon statutes.
The jury found in favor of the plaintiff and awarded him $1 million in emotional distress damages. Over the plaintiff’s objection to capping the damages, the district court entered a judgment for only half that amount after applying the non-economic damages cap set out in Oregon Statute 31.710(1) (“[I]n any civil action seeking damages arising out of bodily injury, including emotional injury or distress, death or property damage of any one person including claims for loss of care, comfort, companionship and society and loss of consortium, the amount awarded for noneconomic damages shall not exceed $500,000.”).
Both parties appealed to the Ninth Circuit, challenging the emotional damages award. The Ninth Circuit certified the following question of state law to the Oregon State Supreme Court: “Does Oregon Revised Statutes § 31.710(1) cap the noneconomic damages awarded on an employment discrimination claim under Oregon Revised Statutes § 659A.030?”
On May 6, 2021, the Oregon State Supreme Court held that “the answer, in short, is no. The damages cap in ORS 31.710(1) does not apply to an award of noneconomic damages for an unlawful employment practice claim under ORS 659A.030 in which the plaintiff does not seek damages that arise out of bodily injury and instead seeks damages for emotional injury.”
This clarification will now allow others who experienced unlawful employment practices to receive damages exceeding the $500,000 benchmark and further deters employers from practicing unlawful employment procedures.
For more information on discrimination, retaliation and whistleblower’s protection laws, visit MSE’s website at https://www.mselaborlaw.com/practice-areas/labor-unions.
