Plaintiff alleged defendant violated the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), N.J.S.A. 10:5-1 to -42, by terminating his employment in retaliation for his opposition to defendant's requests that he make false statements concerning, and seek a baseless restraining order against, a co-employee in retaliation for the co-employee's filing of a complaint alleging defendant violated the LAD. The motion court granted defendant summary judgment, finding plaintiff did not present evidence establishing the prerequisite for a LAD retaliation claim under the Supreme Court's decision in Carmona v. Resorts International Hotel, Inc., 189 N.J. 354 (2007). More particularly, the motion court found plaintiff failed to demonstrate there was a good faith and reasonable basis for his co-employee's LAD complaint.
The court reverses the summary judgment order, finding Carmona's good faith and reasonable basis prerequisite for a LAD-retaliation claim applies to the protected activity under N.J.S.A. 10:5-12(d) triggering the alleged retaliatory actions. Unlike the plaintiff in Carmona, plaintiff did not allege he was retaliated by engaging in the protected activity of filing a LAD complaint. See N.J.S.A. 10:5-12(d). Instead, plaintiff alleged he was retaliated against for engaging in protected activity under N.J.S.A. 10:5-12(d) by opposing "acts forbidden under" the LAD—defendant's requests he make false statements and obtain a baseless restraining order against the co-employee in retaliation for her filing of a LAD complaint. The court holds that to satisfy the Carmona prerequisite for his LAD retaliation claim, plaintiff was required to demonstrate he had a good faith and reasonable basis to oppose defendant's requests because he alleged that protected activity triggered the alleged retaliation against him.