Third Circuit Predicts New Jersey Will Abandon ‘Background Circumstances Rule’

On March 6, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit issued a ruling reviving a white male police officer’s racial and religious discrimination lawsuit that alleged he was denied the role of police chief in favor of a lower-ranked candidate, and said it expects that New Jersey is likely to follow the Supreme Court of the United States’ 2025 decision that tossed the “background circumstances” heightened standard of proof for majority groups in discrimination claims.