## Facts

- A Boston University English professor was denied tenure and alleged the denial was based on sex discrimination.
- The plaintiff brought claims including Title VII and Massachusetts General Laws chapter 151B.
- A jury tried a legal claim and returned a $200,000 verdict for the plaintiff, answering a special interrogatory that the tenure denial was because of sex-based discrimination.
- The court treated the jury’s discrimination finding as binding for the overlapping statutory discrimination claims and proceeded to determine appropriate equitable and related relief.
- The plaintiff sought reinstatement with tenure as an associate professor, immediate promotion to full professor, a paid sabbatical, retroactive retirement contributions, emotional-distress damages under state law, and prospective relief to prevent future discrimination (including requested public posting of the result).
- The record included evidence of emotional harm following the tenure denial.

## Issues

1. Whether the jury’s special interrogatory finding of sex discrimination in the tenure decision bound the court in resolving overlapping Title VII and chapter 151B liability.
2. Whether equitable relief should include reinstatement with tenure in an academic setting and, if so, on what terms.
3. Whether additional academic and economic relief (immediate promotion, sabbatical, retroactive retirement contributions) was necessary to make the plaintiff whole.
4. Whether the plaintiff proved compensable emotional distress under chapter 151B and the proper amount of such damages.
5. What prospective injunctive relief, if any, was warranted to prevent future discrimination.

## Decision

- The court held that the jury’s special interrogatory finding that the plaintiff was denied tenure because of sex discrimination was binding on the court as to liability under Title VII and chapter 151B, leaving only the question of relief.
- The court ordered reinstatement of the plaintiff as a tenured associate professor of English.
- The court awarded $15,000 in emotional-distress damages under Massachusetts General Laws chapter 151B.
- The court granted injunctive relief prohibiting future discriminatory conduct.
- The court denied certain requested remedies that went beyond make-whole relief, including immediate promotion to full professor and a paid sabbatical, and did not order all requested ancillary benefits.

## Legal Principles

- When legal and equitable civil-rights claims overlap and a jury resolves a factual issue by special interrogatory, the court is bound by that factual finding when adjudicating the equitable claims, and the remaining task is to fashion appropriate relief.
- Reinstatement is an equitable remedy committed to the court’s discretion; even in academic tenure disputes, courts may order reinstatement with tenure when required to remedy unlawful discrimination, while considering practical feasibility and workplace friction.
- Title VII and parallel state anti-discrimination law authorize relief aimed at making the plaintiff whole; courts may refuse remedies that are not shown to be necessary to repair the injury caused by discrimination (e.g., automatic advancement in rank or discretionary academic benefits).
- Under Massachusetts General Laws chapter 151B, proven emotional distress caused by discriminatory employment actions is compensable; the amount is determined by the evidentiary record and proportionality to the overall remedial package.
- Prospective injunctive relief is appropriate to prevent recurrence of discriminatory practices, but courts may tailor such relief to avoid unnecessary intrusion into institutional governance.

## Conclusion

The court treated the jury’s finding that sex discrimination caused the tenure denial as conclusive for statutory liability, then crafted make-whole relief by ordering tenured reinstatement, awarding limited emotional-distress damages under state law, and enjoining future discrimination while declining broader academic and ancillary remedies not shown to be necessary.


Brown v. Trs. of Bos. Univ., 674 F. Supp. 393 (D. Mass. 1987)