Fairgrove Property Management Lawsuit: Figueroa Verdict and Claims

A San Diego jury awarded former employee Edgar Figueroa $2.335 million in February 2026 in the Fairgrove Property Management lawsuit, finding that the company discriminated against him because of a disability, retaliated against him for requesting an accommodation, and failed to engage in the interactive process California law requires. The case is Edgar Figueroa v. Sullivan Properties, Inc. d/b/a Fairgrove Property Management, San Diego Superior Court Case No. 37-2024-000012929-CU-WT-CTL.¹²

What Happened to Edgar Figueroa

On August 8, 2023, Figueroa hurt his lower back while moving a desk at Fairgrove’s offices. The company’s head of human resources had assigned him the task.²

According to evidence at trial, while Figueroa was on his way to the emergency room, that same HR executive began searching for documentation that could justify firing him for performance issues. When none existed, the company allegedly manufactured documents to make it look as if his position had already been slated for elimination before the injury.¹

Figueroa later submitted a doctor’s note asking for a 15-pound lifting restriction and permission to work remotely while he recovered. Instead of discussing those accommodations with him, the HR representative expressed skepticism about the requests and suggested he would “continue submitting doctor’s notes to obtain disability accommodations.” The company moved to terminate him.²

What the Jury Decided

On February 18, 2026, the jury returned a verdict for Figueroa on all three claims: disability discrimination, retaliation for seeking a reasonable accommodation, and failure to engage in the interactive process. The $2.335 million award broke down this way:²

Lost wages: $35,000
Emotional distress: $1,000,000
Punitive damages: $1,300,000

Because California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act lets prevailing plaintiffs recover attorney’s fees and litigation costs on top of the jury award, the total recovery is expected to exceed $3.3 million. No motion for a new trial or appeal has been publicly reported.²

Key Moments From the Trial

Two exchanges shaped the case. Fairgrove’s CEO testified that the company had handled Figueroa’s injury and accommodation request “flawlessly.” The company’s head of HR admitted during testimony to having provided false statements in the litigation.¹²

The relatively small lost-wages figure alongside the much larger emotional distress and punitive awards suggests a case driven less by economic harm than by the jury’s view of the company’s conduct. Punitive damages under California law are meant to punish and deter behavior a jury finds especially harmful or deliberate.¹

The Law Behind the Claims

Figueroa sued under California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act, which applies to employers with five or more employees. FEHA prohibits firing or demoting an employee because of a disability when the employee can perform the core duties of the job with or without accommodation. It requires employers to engage in a timely, good-faith conversation with the employee to identify accommodations that might work. And it makes retaliation for requesting an accommodation illegal on its own.

When a jury finds an employer violated these rules, remedies can include lost wages, emotional distress damages, attorney’s fees, and, in cases involving especially harmful or deliberate conduct, punitive damages. Figueroa’s jury awarded damages in all of those categories.

Who Fairgrove Is

Fairgrove Property Management is an Irvine-based apartment management company led by founder and CEO Marco Vartanian. Vartanian bought Sullivan Property Management in 2019 and rebranded it as Fairgrove in 2023; the original Sullivan firm dates to 1976. The defendant in the lawsuit is listed as Sullivan Properties, Inc., operating under the Fairgrove name.³ The company manages multifamily apartment properties across Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties, with San Diego its largest market.⁴

1
The Legal Feed. San Diego Jury Awards $2.335 Million in Disability Discrimination Case
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PR Newswire. Franklin Law PC: San Diego Jury Awards $2,335,000 Verdict in Employment-Related Dispute
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