Employment Law Jury Verdicts: New York
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Employment Law Jury Verdicts
Notable employment law jury verdicts from courts in California and New York. These cases illustrate the types of employment disputes and outcomes that have occurred in recent years. Results depend on the specific facts and circumstances of each case.
NEW YORK VERDICTS
Disability Discrimination
New York, NY — $2,550,000
A jury found New York University liable for disability discrimination after terminating an employee who sought to continue working remotely following serious complications from COVID-19. The jury originally awarded more than $4 million. After post-trial proceedings, the court reduced the award to $2.55 million, which the plaintiff accepted (Ahmad v. New York University, July 2025).
Hostile Work Environment
Long Island, NY — $1,299,999
A jury found Tuttnauer USA liable for a hostile work environment and awarded $2.5 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages. The court later reduced the compensatory award to $1 million and the punitive award to $299,999, resulting in an award of approximately $1.3 million (Russo v. Tuttnauer USA Company Limited, Jan. 2025).
Pregnancy & Disability Discrimination
Long Island, NY — $1,050,000
A federal jury found Constellation Health Services and related defendants liable on six employment claims involving pregnancy and disability discrimination, failure to accommodate, and retaliation. The jury awarded approximately $1.05 million, but the court later ordered a reduction of the damages following post-trial motions (Guerrero v. Constellation Home Care, LLC, Feb. 2026).
Workplace Retaliation
New York, NY — $2,420,000
A federal jury found that New York television station PIX11 and its parent company retaliated against longtime reporter Ojinika Obiekwe after she complained about racial discrimination. The jury awarded approximately $1.14 million in compensatory damages and $1.28 million in punitive damages (Obiekwe v. Nexstar Media Group/WPIX, July 2026).
Disability Discrimination
New York, NY — $3,000,000+
A federal jury found National Grid liable for failing to accommodate two employees with disabilities after denying their requests to continue working remotely. The jury awarded each employee more than $1.5 million, including a combined $2 million in punitive damages (Russo & Messiha v. National Grid USA, Oct. 2025).
Sex Discrimination
Brooklyn, NY — $3,650,000
A federal jury found Mayflower International Hotel Group and Yan Zhi Hotel Management liable for sex discrimination under the New York State and New York City Human Rights Laws. The jury awarded $1.65 million in compensatory damages and $2 million in punitive damages, resulting in a total judgment of $3.65 million (Figueroa v. Mayflower International Hotel Group, Oct. 2025).
Workplace Retaliation
New York, NY — $8,400,000
A federal jury found Cognizant Technology Solutions liable for termination-based retaliation against a former employee. The jury awarded $4.2 million in compensatory damages and $4.2 million in punitive damages (Franchitti v. Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation, Mar. 2026).
Severance
New York, NY — $1,105,269
A federal jury found The Arena Group Holdings liable for breach of an executive's employment agreement following his termination. The award included $500,000 in salary severance, $500,000 in annual bonus severance, $50,269 in COBRA reimbursement, and $55,000 in unpaid quarterly bonuses (Kraft v. The Arena Group Holdings Inc., Apr. 2026).
Retaliation / Sex Discrimination
New York, NY — $6,130,000
A jury found that Napoli Bern Ripka Shkolnik LLP retaliated against its former general counsel after she brought sex discrimination claims involving unequal pay and a denied promotion. The jury awarded $330,000 in compensatory damages and $5.8 million in punitive damages (Rubin v. Napoli Bern Ripka Shkolnik, LLP, June 2025).
Workplace Retaliation
Long Island, NY — $5,200,000
A federal jury found the Town of Hempstead liable for retaliating against a longtime employee after she complained about workplace discrimination and engaged in protected activity. The jury awarded approximately $5.2 million in damages, including substantial compensation for past and future emotional harm and punitive damages against individual defendants (Fee v. Town of Hempstead, July 2026).
Unpaid Bonuses & Retaliation
New York, NY — $740,000
A federal jury found Camuto Group liable for unpaid compensation and retaliation. The jury awarded $150,000 in unpaid compensation and $590,000 for retaliation. A stipulated final judgment of $1,232,500 was later entered, including prejudgment interest and attorneys' fees and costs (Lombardo v. Camuto Group LLC, May 2026).
Disability Discrimination / Failure to Hire
Syracuse, NY — $1,675,000
A federal jury found McLane Northeast liable for disability discrimination after the company refused to interview and hire a qualified Deaf applicant after learning of her disability. The jury awarded $25,000 in back pay, $150,000 in emotional distress damages, and $1.5 million in punitive damages (EEOC v. McLane/Eastern, Inc. d/b/a McLane Northeast, Feb. 2024).
Retaliation
New York, NY — $1,605,000
A jury found Brown-Forman Corporation liable for retaliation after an employee complained about discrimination. The jury awarded $1,005,000 in lost back earnings and $600,000 in lost incidental employment compensation. The court later reduced the $600,000 portion to $130,000 (Leone v. Brown-Forman Corporation, Sept. 2024).
Hostile Work Environment & Retaliation
Brooklyn, NY — $260,000
A federal jury found in favor of an employee who was subjected to a hostile work environment based on race and sex and retaliated against after engaging in protected activity. The jury also found for the employee on a defamation claim and awarded $260,000. The verdict was later affirmed on appeal. (Smart v. USA Labor for Hire, Inc., Jan. 2024).
