No cap on noneconomic damages in Oregon employment cases

Noneconomic damages (i.e., damages for such things as emotional injury or mental distress) are uncapped in Oregon employment cases, the state supreme court recently ruled in response to a question from the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Oregon employers. They aren’t limited by the statutory noneconomic damages cap created for certain types of personal injury claims in the state.

Facts

Max Zweizig sued his employer, Northwest Direct Teleservices, Inc., and an individual in the federal district court in Oregon claiming they had aided and abetted retaliation against him for whistleblowing against his former employer. He alleged no physical injuries but did claim noneconomic damages for emotional distress. He was awarded $1 million in noneconomic damages at trial.

Northwest Direct sought and was granted a reduction of the award to $500,000 claiming Oregon’s statutory cap on noneconomic damages applied to Zweizig’s employment law claims. The trial court agreed, reading the statute broadly to meet its goal of reducing the cost of personal injury litigation.

Oregon Supreme Court’s decision

Zweizig appealed the reduction to the 9th Circuit, which asked the supreme court to determine whether the noneconomic damages cap contained in ORS 31.710(1) applied to employment discrimination claims under the state’s discrimination statutes. The statute states: