NJ Division on Civil Rights

The New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (DCR) is the state agency charged with enforcing New Jersey’s civil rights laws, including the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) and the New Jersey Family Leave Act (NJFLA). The mission of DCR is to protect the people of New Jersey from discrimination and bias-based harassment in employment, housing, and public accommodations.

The LAD, one the most comprehensive anti-discrimination laws in the country, prohibits discrimination and harassment based on actual or perceived race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability and other protected characteristics. The law applies in employment, housing, and places of public accommodation (places open to the public, including businesses, restaurants, schools, summer camps, medical providers, government offices and agencies, etc.).

DCR has several bureaus that work to prevent, eliminate, and remedy individual and systemic discrimination and bias-based harassment:

• DCR’s Enforcement Unit has a team of neutral investigators who investigate complaints of discrimination and bias-based harassment;
• DCR’s Legal Unit has a team of attorneys who work with investigators on investigations, evaluating the parties’ legal claims and defenses, and assisting the Director in deciding motions and in reaching ultimate findings in each case;
• DCR’s Community Relations Unit has a team of community relations specialists who work to prevent acts of discrimination and bias-based harassment through education and community engagement and work directly with impacted communities after civil rights incidents.
• DCR’s Strategic Initiatives and Enforcement Unit has a team of attorneys who draft statutory amendments and regulations, issue reports to raise the profile of civil rights issues, draft legal guidance documents, and undertake Director-Initiated Investigations into possible patterns and practices of discrimination.
• DCR’s Education and Training Unit has a team of trainers who work to proactively educate the public about the Law Against Discrimination and how to recognize and prevent acts of discrimination and bias-based harassment through interactive virtual and in-person trainings.