The cashier ended up wetting herself in front of a line of customers at checkout, an event that set off a traumatic descent into psychiatric breakdown.

"A single failure to make reasonable accommodation can have tragic consequences for an employee who is not accommodated," wrote Justice Timothy Reardon of the 1st District Court of Appeal in San Francisco.

The ruling by the three-judge panel was unanimous.

The employee, a 51-year-old San Pablo resident, is identified in the ruling as "A.M." A native of El Salvador, she fled the country in 1981 after the outbreak of civil war, came to the United States, and started working for Albertsons in 1987. She joined the former Albertsons store in Fairfax in 1999.

In January 2003, she was diagnosed with cancer of the tonsils and larynx and took medical leave for chemotherapy and radiation, according to the court's ruling. When she returned to work in January 2004, she was still suffering a chronic dry mouth because of the cancer treatment's effects on her saliva glands.

As a result, the employee was forced to drink water constantly, which made her urinate frequently. For about a year, the store accommodated her by letting her have drinks at the check stand and covering for her when she needed to use the bathroom, which

But in February 2005, a new employee, Kellie Sampson, started working at the store, and was in charge of running the market when senior managers were gone. One night, when A.M. asked Sampson for a restroom break, Sampson asked to wait while she helped unload a delivery truck. Only one other employee was present that night, a courtesy clerk who was not authorized to use the register.

A.M. agreed to wait. Some time later, as A.M.'s need for a break intensified, she called for Sampson on the store intercom. Sampson said the delivery truck was being unloaded and she could not leave the merchandise unattended.

Ten to 20 more minutes passed, and with customers lining up at the checkout lane, A.M. could not leave the cash register unattended. A.M. called for Sampson again, and again the supervisor said she was too busy.

A.M. then urinated on herself while standing at the cash register. When Sampson finally returned, A.M. left the store and went home.

"There was no evidence that (Sampson) had knowledge of A.M.'s disability or the accommodation that had been granted by the store managers," Justice Reardon wrote.

A.M. quit the Albertsons a short time later and became withdrawn, listless and haunted by bad dreams. She also showered obsessively and shaved off her body hair in an effort to purge what she perceived as the smell of urine. She contemplated suicide.

After psychiatric hospitalization and treatment, A.M. attempted to return to work, but Albertsons managers expressed uncertainty over whether they could accommodate her therapy schedule. Eventually she was given a job at another Albertsons store.

In 2006, A.M. filed a lawsuit in Marin Superior Court, claiming Albertsons violated her rights under the state Fair Employment and Housing Act by failing to provide reasonable accommodation of her disability. She also claimed the company violated the FEHA for "failure to engage in the interactive process" when she tried to return to work.

A Marin jury ruled in her favor and awarded her $200,000. Albertsons appealed to the 1st District Court, seeking a new trial for alleged errors in the trial process.

The three-judge panel released its ruling against Albertsons on Thursday.

"We're very happy with the ruling," said one of A.M.'s lawyers, Leslie Levy of Boxer & Gerson LLP in Oakland. "We think that it sends the appropriate message to employers."

Albertsons' lawyers, Steven Blackburn and Leslie Mann of Epstein Becker & Green in San Francisco, did not return calls and e-mails seeking comment.

The Albertsons store in Fairfax closed in 2006. Later the same year, the company sold 132 stores in Northern California and Nevada to Save Mart Supermarkets of Modesto.

Contact Gary Klien via e-mail at gklien@marinij.com