Pamela J. Graziadei v. Capital Health System, Inc.

CourtNew Jersey Superior Court Appellate Division
DecidedMay 23, 2025
DocketA-1614-23
StatusPublished

This text of Pamela J. Graziadei v. Capital Health System, Inc. (Pamela J. Graziadei v. Capital Health System, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Jersey Superior Court Appellate Division primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pamela J. Graziadei v. Capital Health System, Inc., (N.J. Ct. App. 2025).

Opinion

NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION

SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY APPELLATE DIVISION DOCKET NO. A-1614-23

PAMELA J. GRAZIADEI,

Plaintiff-Appellant, APPROVED FOR PUBLICATION v. May 23, 2025 APPELLATE DIVISION CAPITAL HEALTH SYSTEM, INC.,

Defendant,

and

RECOVERY & MONITORING PROGRAM OF NEW JERSEY d/b/a RAMP, THE NEW JERSEY STATE NURSES' ASSOCIATION, and INSTITUTE FOR NURSING, INC.,

Defendants-Respondents. _____________________________

Argued February 12, 2025 – Decided May 23, 2025

Before Judges Marczyk, Paganelli and Torregrossa- O'Connor.

On appeal from the Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, Mercer County, Docket No. L-2259-19. Gregory B. Noble argued the cause for appellant (O'Connor, Parsons, Lane & Noble, LLC, attorneys; Gregory B. Noble and R. Daniel Bause, on the briefs).

Elizabeth F. Lorell argued the cause for respondents (Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, LLP, attorneys; Elizabeth F. Lorell and Michael J. Nesse, on the brief).

The opinion of the court was delivered by

PAGANELLI, J.A.D.

Plaintiff, Pamela J. Graziadei, appeals from three trial court orders that

resulted in the dismissal of her complaint for lack of subject matter

jurisdiction, in which she alleged defendants, Capital Health System, Inc.

(Capital Health); Recovery and Monitoring Program of New Jersey d/b/a

RAMP; the New Jersey State Nurses' Association (SNA); and the Institute for

Nursing, Inc. (INI), discriminated and retaliated against her in violation of the

New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), N.J.S.A. 10:5-1 to -50.

Because we conclude the trial court had subject matter jurisdiction over

plaintiff's LAD claims, we reverse and remand.

I.

"[F]or purposes of our review, we accept as true" the allegations

contained in plaintiff's Law Division complaint. Santiago v. N.Y. & N.J. Port

Auth., 429 N.J. Super. 150, 154-55 (App. Div. 2012) (citing Union Ink Co. v.

AT&T Corp., 352 N.J. Super. 617, 627 (App. Div. 2002) ("For the limited

A-1614-23 2 purposes of the underlying motion to dismiss . . . for lack of jurisdiction over

the subject matter, . . . we must accept as true the allegations of the

complaint.")).

Plaintiff alleged that in 2000 she began employment with Capital Health

as a nurse manager. In 2006, she "was promoted to a director-level position"

and in 2008, she "was promoted to . . . Nursing Divisional Director of

Maternal Child Health." She alleged she was "a strong performer" and

"received favorable performance evaluations."

On the morning of September 24, 2018, while at work, "plaintiff was

asked to submit to a breathalyzer test . . . [and h]er blood alcohol level was

over the legal limit as a result of her consuming alcohol the night before."

"[P]laintiff was referred to defendant RAMP's program. 1 RAMP

purport[ed] to provide recovery and monitoring programs on behalf of" the INI

1 On October 5, 2018, plaintiff and "[t]he New Jersey Board of Nursing [(Board)] and/or [RAMP]" executed a private letter agreement (PLA). In part, the PLA provided that plaintiff agreed:

[T]hat any deviation from the terms of this [PLA] without the prior written consent of the Board shall constitute a failure to comply with the terms of this agreement. Upon receipt of any reliable information indicating that you have violated any term of this agreement, your nursing license may be automatically suspended by the Board. You may, upon notice, request a hearing to contest the entry of such an order.

A-1614-23 3 and the SNA. "As a result of RAMP and/or Capital Health's internal policies,

plaintiff was on a leave of absence from approximately September 25, 2018

until March of 2019." During this period of time, "plaintiff was assured . . .

that her job would be there for her when she returned."

In November 2018, plaintiff was advised "that she could not go back to

her management position and that it would be two to three years before she

could go back to that job." Thereafter, plaintiff was advised "that a

management position would be 'too stressful' and that she needed to focus on

recovery." Plaintiff was told "that she would not be able to return to a

management position for five years."

Plaintiff "successfully underwent all of RAMP's requirements during her

leave of absence, including three Alcoholics Anonymous meetings per week as

well as an initial period of ninety meetings in ninety days."

Plaintiff "pleaded with RAMP to allow her to return to her management

position, stressing that she had successfully completed all of RAMP's

requirements[,] . . . had been in nurse management for over thirty years[,] . . .

_________________________ At any such hearing the sole issue shall be whether any of the information received regarding your violation of the agreement was materially false.

A-1614-23 4 did not have any primary patient responsibilities[,] . . . [and] was primarily an

administrator."

In February 2019, RAMP advised Capital Health plaintiff "would not be

returning to her management position." Further, "[w]hen [plaintiff wa]s

approved to return to work, RAMP staff w[ould] work with her to find an

appropriate non-managerial position." In April 2019, plaintiff wrote to RAMP

and "implored [it] to allow her to be reinstated to her rightful management

position." In response, plaintiff was advised "that she would not be getting a

managerial position for five years."

In April 2019, "plaintiff returned to work at Capital Health. She was

given the job of Quality and Safety Department, Performance Improvement

Analyst." Her salary was approximately half of what she earned in her prior

position.

In November 2019, plaintiff filed her complaint. She claimed she

"suffer[ed] from alcoholism" and defendants violated the LAD by

discriminating against her on that basis.

On June 28, 2023, the trial court granted plaintiff permission to file an

amended complaint. Plaintiff asserted between "March of 2020 until the

present, there . . . [were] approximately six . . . instances where defendants . . .

failed to cooperate with [her] in her requests for approval to obtain director

A-1614-23 5 level and/or supervisory positions and/or to secure permission to work

overtime." Further, plaintiff alleged "[t]he refusals to cooperate . . . [were] in

direct retaliation for plaintiff's lawsuit . . . and w[ere] the by-product of

continued discrimination and failure to accommodate."

In addition, plaintiff claimed RAMP, "with . . . knowledge of [her] . . .

discrimination lawsuit," discharged her from the program because "she had

been allegedly non-compliant" and the "decision to discharge plaintiff from

RAMP put[ her] license and career in severe jeopardy." 2 She reiterated her

LAD allegations and included a claim for retaliation.

On September 8, 2023, the trial court heard the parties' oral arguments

regarding defendants', the SNA's, the INI's, and RAMP's, motion to dismiss

plaintiff's complaint for a lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

At the conclusion of the argument, the court rendered an oral opinion.

The court stated it could "interchange" the allegations from Beaver v.

Magellan Health Services, Inc., 433 N.J. Super. 430 (App. Div. 2013), with the

allegations in this case and "fit them in almost directly" and reach the same

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