Lula M. Henry, Plaintiff-Appellant v. New Jersey Department of Human Services; Hon. Clark E. Bruno, Acting…

Summary

The Supreme Court of New Jersey affirmed the dismissal of the plaintiff's retaliation claim as time‑barred under the two‑year statute of limitations, but reversed the dismissal of the discrimination claim and remanded for a Lopez hearing to determine when the cause of action accrued under the discovery rule. The Court applied a de novo standard of review to the summary‑judgment rulings and held that the discovery rule may toll the limitations period where the plaintiff could not have reasonably discovered the discriminatory conduct. The decision therefore leaves the retaliation claim resolved and sends the discrimination claim back for further fact‑finding.