Court kicks weight-limit lawsuit back to state court

Friday, April 8, 2005 | 9:36 a.m.

ATLANTIC CITY -- A legal challenge to Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa's imposition of weight limits on cocktail servers and bartenders was sent back to state court Thursday.

The lawsuit, filed Feb. 22 by a man who had applied for a job at the casino, was originally filed in Superior Court in Ocean County but later remanded to U.S. District Court in Trenton. On Thursday U.S. District Judge Mary L. Cooper returned it.

James McNally of Manahawkin contends the policy that bans costumed beverage servers from gaining more than 7 percent of their weight is discriminatory. The 34-year-old McNally, who works in police administration but had applied for a job as a bartender at the casino, initially said the policy violates the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Civil Rights Act.

He has since withdrawn his ADA and Civil Rights Act claims, leaving the Law Against Discrimination claim to be decided.

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