This note examines the application of damages mitigation principles in the age discrimination context. The note focuses on the principal negative externalities of the duty to mitigate when applied in age discrimination cases where the employee-plaintiff has reached retirement age (RA).While the note couches its contentions in the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and the US labour market, the principles discussed therein are applicable to mitigation issues in most other jurisdictions. The note argues that the confluence of several economic factors impacting RA plaintiffs, renders the objectives of mitigation unattainable or peripheral in such cases. The note concludes by suggesting twopossible remedial measures to limit the unnecessary collateral effects resulting from the unsuitability of the duty to mitigate in ADEA matters where plaintiffs are in RA.
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