Appellate Division Rejects Plaintiff’s Belatedly-Added Theory of Disability Discrimination and Finds a One-Time Allergic Reaction to Prescription Medication Does Not Constitute a Disability Under the LAD

The plaintiff appealed from the grant of the defendant’s motion for summary judgment dismissing her claims of disability discrimination under the LAD.

The plaintiff, who was employed as a special education aide, was terminated following a “narcotic drug-induced medical emergency” after taking prescribed medications for sciatica pain. She thereafter filed suit, citing sciatica pain as her alleged disability, contending that her termination was motivated by discriminatory animus.

On appeal, the plaintiff argued the trial court erred in failing to find that she established a prima facie case of disability discrimination based on two separate alleged disabilities: (1) her sciatica and (2) her alleged severe allergy to medications, which was not cited as an alleged disability in the complaint.

The Appellate Division affirmed, finding no evidence that the plaintiff was terminated, nor discriminatorily treated, because of her sciatica. With respect to the allegation that her allergic reaction to medication constituted a disability, the Appellate Division, citing Stewart v. N.J. Tpk. Auth./Garden State Parkway, 249 N.J. 642, 648 (2022), noted that “[g]enerally, parties may not use a motion for summary judgment to introduce new claims or theories.” 

Nonetheless, in considering whether a one-time allergic reaction constitutes a disability under the LAD, the court found, citing Guzman v. Teixeira Int’l, Inc., 476 N.J. Super. 64, 70 (App. Div. 2023), that a single allergic reaction to medication did not qualify as a disability under the LAD, stating that the plaintiff could not prove that the termination was motivated by discrimination.

In light of this decision, defense counsel should be cognizant of the introduction of new theories of liability added at the summary judgment stage, and should also recognize that not every illness will constitute a disability under the LAD.