Caraballo v. City of Jersey City Police Dep't

204 A.3d 254, 237 N.J. 255
CourtSupreme Court of New Jersey
DecidedMarch 25, 2019
DocketA-71 September Term 2017; 080467
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 204 A.3d 254 (Caraballo v. City of Jersey City Police Dep't) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of New Jersey primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Caraballo v. City of Jersey City Police Dep't, 204 A.3d 254, 237 N.J. 255 (N.J. 2019).

Opinion

JUSTICE SOLOMON delivered the opinion of the Court.

*256**259In this appeal, we are called upon to consider the relationship between two statutory schemes: the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), N.J.S.A. 10:5-1 to -49, and the New Jersey Workers' Compensation Act (Act), N.J.S.A. 34:15-1 to -146. Specifically, we must determine whether a plaintiff who pursues a workers' compensation claim under the Act but fails to utilize its enforcement mechanisms may make a claim for failure to accommodate under the LAD. Relatedly, we must also consider whether medical treatment qualifies as a reasonable accommodation under the LAD.

We answer both inquiries in the negative and conclude that plaintiff Frank Caraballo cannot establish a prima facie failure-to-accommodate claim under the LAD. We therefore reverse the judgment of the Appellate Division and reinstate summary judgment in favor of the Jersey City Police Department (JCPD).

I.

The trial court record reveals the following. Plaintiff Frank Caraballo joined the JCPD as a police officer in February 1973 and became a detective in 1977. While on duty in August 1999, Caraballo sustained injuries to his hands, back, knees, and legs during a motor vehicle accident. The injuries to his knees were severe and became chronic. As a result of those injuries, Caraballo fluctuated between full duty, light duty, and paid sick leave throughout the remainder of his tenure on the police force.

In August 2001, Caraballo filed a workers' compensation claim related to the 1999 accident. He also underwent anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery on his left knee.

Over the next several years, physicians evaluated Caraballo to determine whether he required bilateral knee replacement surgery. Two city-appointed doctors agreed that Caraballo would eventually need total knee replacements to recover fully from his **260injuries; other doctors confirmed Caraballo's need for knee replacement surgery.

In 2006, Caraballo's workers' compensation attorney notified the JCPD's counsel that the city-appointed doctors had agreed that Caraballo was a candidate for knee replacement surgery. His attorney also requested that the JCPD's counsel "[k]indly have [R]isk [M]anagement authorize ... the surgery recommended" by both doctors. In 2008, Caraballo's attorney informed the JCPD's counsel that Caraballo wanted a particular doctor to perform the surgery and that the doctor had been approved by Risk Management.

In August 2010, Caraballo submitted an application for retirement to the New Jersey Division of Pensions and Benefits, with an effective retirement date of March 1, 2011. Around the same time, the Commander of the JCPD Medical Bureau, Lieutenant John McLellan, followed up with Caraballo and his medical providers. Based on his review of Caraballo's file, McLellan determined that Caraballo "had been unfit for duty for numerous years." Although doctors had recommended total knee replacement surgery, McLellan did not believe that Caraballo was pursuing this option. According to McLellan, Caraballo refused to see the doctor "who would *257be able to determine unequivocally whether or not he could have the surgery."

In February 2011, Chief of Police Thomas Comey learned that Caraballo had not undergone knee replacement surgery. Chief Comey arranged a meeting with Caraballo to confirm whether he planned to retire on March 1. Chief Comey informed Caraballo that if he did not retire by that date, the JCPD would apply for an involuntary disability pension on his behalf.

Caraballo retired on March 1. Shortly thereafter, Risk Management authorized an orthopedic surgeon to evaluate Caraballo for bilateral knee replacement surgery. The surgeon examined Caraballo and, according to the doctor's records, Caraballo "was told to contact [the] office to pick a date for surgery pending medical and **261cardiac clearance." Caraballo never called the doctor's office to schedule a date for surgery.

On March 4, 2013, more than six-and-a-half years after he requested that the JCPD authorize knee replacement surgery, Caraballo settled his workers' compensation claim. Shortly thereafter, he filed a complaint against the JCPD asserting a cause of action under the LAD.1 Specifically, Caraballo alleged that the JCPD failed to authorize his knee replacement surgery and, therefore, failed to reasonably accommodate his disability.

After the close of discovery, the JCPD moved for summary judgment, arguing that Caraballo could not bring a failure-to-accommodate claim under the LAD because he was unable to perform the essential functions of his job even with an accommodation. In response, Caraballo maintained that he had established a prima facie failure-to-accommodate case under the LAD.

In an oral decision, the trial court granted the JCPD's motion for summary judgment. The trial court disagreed with Caraballo's contention "that the knee surgery itself qualifies as a reasonable accommodation" under the LAD. The court found that even if the knee surgery could have qualified as a reasonable accommodation, the record contained several medical evaluations showing that Caraballo was unable to carry out the responsibilities of a police officer with or without the surgery. According to the court, Caraballo could not bring a successful failure-to-accommodate claim because his handicap "would pose a hazard to himself, fellow officers, and the public."

The trial court also found that Caraballo could not bring a viable LAD claim because he failed to enforce his right to have knee surgery in the workers' compensation court. Citing **262Flick v. PMA Insurance Co., 394 N.J. Super. 605, 928 A.2d 54 (App. Div. 2007), the court concluded that because Caraballo failed to make an application to enforce his right to have knee surgery, he was "precluded from using a denial of the [w]orkers' [c]ompensation benefits as a basis for his [ ]LAD claim."

On appeal, Caraballo argued that the trial court erred in granting the JCPD's summary judgment motion. According to Caraballo, the judge made "findings of fact on genuinely disputed issues" and "erroneous findings of fact that were not supported by the record." Caraballo also argued that the judge erred in his interpretation *258and application of the LAD and failed to appreciate that knee surgery could qualify as a reasonable accommodation.

In response, the JCPD agreed with the trial court's determination that knee replacement surgery itself does not qualify as a reasonable accommodation under the LAD.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Staci Fleischmann v. New Jersey Department of the Treasury
New Jersey Superior Court App Division, 2026
Paula Guzinsky v. New Jersey Department of Human Services
New Jersey Superior Court App Division, 2025
Terry Hall v. Bpm Lumber, LLC
Kentucky Supreme Court, 2024
In the Matter of George Meadows
New Jersey Superior Court App Division, 2024
Eileen Donnerstag v. Winchester Garden
New Jersey Superior Court App Division, 2024
Christopher Bohnyak v. Town of Westfield
New Jersey Superior Court App Division, 2024
Robin Thomas v. State of New Jersey, Department of Corrections
New Jersey Superior Court App Division, 2024
FREEMAN v. MCDONNELL
D. New Jersey, 2020
CURRO v. HD SUPPLY, INC.
D. New Jersey, 2020

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
204 A.3d 254, 237 N.J. 255, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/caraballo-v-city-of-jersey-city-police-dept-nj-2019.