Matthews

Petitioner is the plaintiff in a superior court action against his former employer, the Regents of the University of California (Regents), and several individual defendants, alleging he was the victim of sexual harassment in violation of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). (Gov. Code, § 12900 et seq.) The individual defendants demurred to petitioner’s amended complaint on the ground that they could not be held personally liable for damages under the FEHA, which confines such liability to the offending party’s employer. We hold that these defendants, all supervisory personnel who were aware of, and at times participated in, the unlawful conduct, are “persons” subject to personal liability for sexual harassment under the FEHA.

Facts and Procedural History

Petitioner was employed as a principal admitting clerk at the Emergency Medicine Center at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Petitioner, a heterosexual male, contends he was subjected to verbal and physical sexual harassment by his homosexual male co workers, including his immediate supervisors, defendants A. J. Gonzales and Jorge Benitez.

Shortly after petitioner completed his job training, many…