New Jersey Employment Lawyer Representing A Teacher That Went Out On Leave For Alcoholism Over 20 Years Ago Reinstated.
Under N.J.S.A. 18A:66-40(a), a school district must return a formerly disabled teacher to the next available opening in the position that he or she held at the time of the disability retirement, so long as the teacher meets the standards set by the State Board of Education for that position, i.e., a valid teaching certificate and endorsements.
Does this standard apply even if the teacher went out over twenty years ago for alcoholism? In New Jersey, the answer is yes. The New Jersey employment lawyer representing the teacher was successful in getting the New Jersey Supreme Court to rule that a teacher that went out on leave for alcoholism dependency over 20 years ago must be reinstated because the Teachers Pension Annuity Fund found her sufficiently recovered to return to teaching. See Klumb v. Board of Education of the Manalapan-Englishtown School District. The New Jersey Supreme Court ordered the Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District to rehire her.
I think most New Jersey employment lawyers will agree that this was a tough case for the teacher's lawyer. New Jersey has some of the most liberal employment laws and this case makes the point.
