Prado v. State

Argued January 17, 2006 In this case, a state employee was sued by co-workers for, among other things, violating their rights under the Law Against Discrimination and the Conscientious Employee Protection Act. In accordance with N.J.S.A. 59:10A-1, the employee requested that the Attorney General undertake his defense. Based on an internal investigation, the Attorney General declined to do so, claiming that the employee acted outside the scope of his employment and engaged in willful misconduct. In this appeal, we articulate the standard that must inform the Attorney General's decision whether to defend a state employee in a civil suit within the purview of the New Jersey Tort Claims Act. We also set forth the manner of judicial review available when the Attorney General refuses to defend.