It’s a precedent-setting case: an Edmonton woman who says she was let go because of her age, took on her employer and won.

Joan Cowling has been involved in a battle with her former employer, the Government of Alberta, for years.

Cowling, who is 72-years-old, lost her job in what is now the Department of Human Services, in 2007.

“I was there for eight years as a contract employee,” Cowling said.

“I was told that my job was going to be restructured and downgraded. I applied for the new position and wasn’t successful.”

The decision didn’t sit well with the Edmonton woman.

"I felt it was a case of being discriminated against because of my age,” Cowling said.

She took it to the Alberta Human Rights Commission and in a recent decision, the tribunal sided with Cowling, finding that the province made a mistake in letting the woman go.

The tribunal chair noted that companies can re-jig jobs but they don’t have the legal right to deny work to people based on how old or how young they are.

The province has been ordered to give Cowling her job back and pay her for missed time at work.

The tribunal also fined the government $15,000 for what it calls, hurting Joan’s dignity and self-esteem.

“It’s very challenging to have your income taken away but that’s really only one aspect of it,” Cowling sad.

“I talk about the relationships, working relationships that I had with people and also self-fulfillment that a job brings… self-esteem is really impacted.”

Human rights expert Patricia Paradis says the case is setting a precedent.

“Right now it’s a precedent-setting decision,” said Paradis, who teaches human rights law at the University of Alberta.

“It certainly sends a strong message about age discrimination in Alberta.”

Paradis says this case is something that she’ll be bringing up to her own students, and imagines it will soon be discussed in classrooms across the country.

“They've given her $15,000 in injury to dignity and damages and that says something about the circumstances the tribunal found in this case,” Paradis said.

“Any tribunal across the country has the authority to award those kinds of damages but when they do, one gets the impression that they’re sending a message.”

But the fight is far from over.

The Alberta government has declined to comment on the case, but is appealing the tribunal’s decision, which means Cowling is now preparing for another fight in court.

It could take years before she sees any compensation, if at all.

Still, she’s hopeful.

“I'm optimistic,” Cowling said. “I’m very optimistic that we can amicably settle this. That’s my hope.”

She hopes her case will encourage others who may be in the same situation, to stand up for their rights as well.

“It’s really important to stand up for what you believe in. I felt very strongly that I was being discriminated against and the tribunal chair clearly found that, there was evidence that I was being discriminated against,” Cowling said.

“I think people can look to this and say, ‘if I have the qualifications, I have the skills, I’m interested and capable, I can work.’”

With files from Jeff Harrington