On Thursday, January 8, judges on the Appellate Division’s Part C will hear oral argument in eighteen consolidated cases, the first listed one captioned Tabei v. Bally’s Park Place, LLC. Each of the cases was brought under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, alleging that plaintiffs were discriminated against, based on their ages, in Bally’s’ hiring of bartenders for a new bar, the “Boardwalk Saloon.” Plaintiffs appeal a summary judgment for defendants in all cases.

Plaintiffs cite a number of requirements imposed by Bally’s for bartenders at the Boardwalk Saloon. Though none of them expressly banned older persons from becoming bartenders, plaintiffs say that qualifications such as training to ride a mechanical bull, training to dance behind the bar and on the floor of the establishment, and maintaining “a weight proportionate to height” (among other things) are, in and of themselves, criteria that older persons are unable to satisfy as younger persons are.

Defendants respond, among other things, that plaintiffs conceded that age had no effect on plaintiffs’ ability to satisfy most of the hiring criteria, other than “weight proportionate to height.” As to that criterion, defendants say that they adjusted it to account for age-related weight gain, so that there was no unlawful age discrimination.

The briefs in this appeal are available here. The oral argument can be viewed at this link.