Housing Providers Failed to Properly Accommodate Emotional Support Animals for Housing Residents with Disabilities

TRENTON – Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the Division on Civil Rights (DCR) announced today that DCR has issued Findings of Probable Cause in six cases alleging discrimination on the basis of disability in violation of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD).  The six Findings of Probable Cause announced today all involve management companies or property owners who allegedly either failed to accept an emotional support animal as a reasonable accommodation for a disability, or failed to follow the appropriate process for considering the tenant’s request for an emotional support animal.

As many as one in four New Jerseyans lives with a long-term disability, and as many as 20% of New Jersey residents have been diagnosed with short-term or long-term depression. In a March 2024 decision, the New Jersey Supreme Court recognized that emotional support animals play a key role in helping “people who struggle with mental health issues and other disabilities, and can enable them to function better in their everyday lives.” And it made clear that housing residents with disabilities are entitled to request an accommodation to a no-pet policy in order to keep an emotional support animal. The Findings of Probable Cause that DCR announced today apply the analysis announced in this New Jersey Supreme Court decision, known as Players Place II Condominium Association, Inc. v. K.P.

These six Findings of Probable Cause involve multi-unit properties in Camden, Essex, Hudson, and Morris Counties. In each case, DCR’s investigation found sufficient evidence to support a reasonable suspicion that the property owner, management company, or both violated the LAD’s prohibition against disability discrimination by failing to properly consider a request made by residents with disabilities to keep an emotional support animal.

“New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination, one of the nation’s oldest and most powerful civil rights laws, protects the right of all New Jerseyans with disabilities to request and obtain reasonable accommodations in housing,” said Attorney General Platkin. “We are sending a message to all housing providers this Disability Pride Month: Providing reasonable accommodations is not optional, and if you violate our laws, we will hold you accountable.”

In addition, DCR announced today that it has also developed a new training regarding assistance animals to clarify the LAD’s protections following the New Jersey Supreme Court’s decision in Players Place. To register for a training with DCR, visit: https://www.njoag.gov/about/divisions-and-offices/division-on-civil-rights-home/education-and-training-unit/etu-trainings/.

“The Law Against Discrimination provides important protections for individuals who request an accommodation for a disability,” said Sundeep Iyer, Director of the Division on Civil Rights. “These protections mean housing providers cannot simply rely on a ‘no-pets’ policy to reject a request for an emotional support animal, and they must engage in good faith with residents with disabilities who request an emotional support animal. Unfortunately, some housing providers still haven’t gotten the message. That’s why we’re bolstering our efforts to educate the public – and to take enforcement action where violations of the law occur.”

The Findings of Probable Cause announced today involve a variety of alleged violations of the LAD’s protections for residents and prospective residents with disabilities.

In one of the Findings of Probable Cause, DCR found sufficient evidence to support a reasonable suspicion that Claridge House, a condominium complex in Verona, unlawfully denied a request for an emotional support animal from a condo owner with a disability. It rejected a letter from a doctor that the owner submitted in support of their request, even though the letter was sufficient under the LAD because it was provided by a healthcare provider who had personal knowledge of the owner’s disability. It also violated the LAD by requiring the use of a certification form that asked for specific information about the complainant’s disability and required the physician to certify statements under oath, even though both requests are prohibited under the LAD.

In another Finding of Probable Cause, DCR found sufficient evidence to support a reasonable suspicion that Lonaconing Apartments, an apartment complex in Berlin, maintained unlawful procedures for processing a tenant’s request for an emotional support animal.  Among other things, the property required a “certification” for the animal to be completed in writing and sent by mail, even though the complainant provided a note from a doctor that was sufficient to establish the complainant’s need for the emotional support animal under the LAD. The property’s policy for animals also imposed restrictions on emotional support animals based on breed and size, even though the LAD does not permit limits on emotional support animals based on those criteria alone. In addition, the policy required a “pet deposit” for assistance animals, which violates the LAD because it amounts to an additional charge to receive an accommodation.

DCR also issued a Finding of Probable Cause in a matter involving Hamilton Gardens, a multi-unit apartment complex in East Orange. The complainant requested permission to live with a cat as an emotional support animal and provided a letter in support of that request from a physician.  But the property failed to respond to the complainant’s emails. DCR’s investigation found evidence that the property failed to engage in the “interactive process” required by law in response to a request for an emotional support animal as a reasonable accommodation for a disability.

In the other Findings of Probable Cause announced today, DCR found sufficient evidence to support a reasonable suspicion that the owner of a Jersey City apartment complex posted notices around the apartment complex expressly banning assistance animals and emotional support animals from the property. DCR also issued a Finding of Probable Cause involving Rutgers Village Apartments, a large apartment complex in Parsippany, because the apartment complex required the complainant’s doctor to fill out a form stating that he would testify under oath, a requirement that violates the LAD. And DCR issued a Finding of Probable Cause involving Parkview Towers, a multi-unit rental complex in Collingswood, after the apartment complex denied an accommodation request based on their incorrect view that they were “not required to allow emotional support animals.”

The Findings of Probable Cause announced today do not represent a final adjudication of the cases. Rather, a Finding of Probable Cause means DCR has concluded its preliminary investigation and determined there is sufficient evidence to support a reasonable suspicion the LAD has been violated. Following a final adjudication on the merits by the Superior Court or by the Office of Administrative Law, a respondent found conclusively to violate the LAD may be required to pay a penalty of up to $10,000 per violation for their first adjudicated violation, and up to $50,000 per violation if they commit multiple adjudicated violations within a five-year period.

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To view fact sheets on disability discrimination, on the rights of people with disabilities in employment, housing, and places of public accommodation, on the right to an emotional support animal in housing, and on the right to have a service or guide dog under the LAD, please visit  https://www.njoag.gov/about/divisions-and-offices/division-on-civil-rights-home/division-on-civil-rights-resources/. People with disabilities who believe their rights under the LAD have been violated can file a complaint with DCR by visiting https://bias.njcivilrights.gov/ or calling 1-833-NJDCR4U (833-653-2748).

The New Jersey Division on Civil Rights enforces the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, the New Jersey Family Leave Act, and the Fair Chance in Housing Act, and works to prevent, eliminate, and remedy discrimination and bias-based harassment in employment, housing, and places of public accommodation throughout New Jersey.

To find out more information, go to www.njcivilrights.gov.

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