News & Analysis as of

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Summary Judgment

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

You be the judge: Does this ADA plaintiff have a case?

Based on a real lawsuit. Names have been changed to protect the innocent. Facts may not be 100 percent accurate. PART ONE: Imagine you're the boss. You run a fast-food franchise, Flippin' Burgers. You hire Gwendolyn to...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Employer’s ‘Take It or Leave It’ Offer of Remote Work as Reasonable Accommodation Is a Jury Question, D.C. Circuit Rules

On August 9, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit reversed the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on an employee’s...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Eleventh Circuit Upholds Ruling for Employer on ADA Claims Where Employee Submitted Noncompliant Return-to-Work Letter

On February 7, 2024, in Jones v. Georgia Ports Authority, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a district court’s grant of summary judgment for an employer where a former employee who requested an...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Admission That Business Unit Was Closed Due to Employee's Disability Precludes Dismissal of ADA Claim

When advising employers about the legal risks associated with a business reorganization, we generally advise that discrimination claims are less likely when a company closes an entire facility or department as compared to...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Fifth Circuit Weighs in for the First Time Since COVID-19 as to When Remote Work Can Be Reasonable Accommodation

Fifth Circuit precedent recognizes the “general consensus among courts” that regular, in-person work is an essential function of most jobs. Yet the continued viability of this premise has been in question, given the ability...more

Butler Snow LLP

6th Circuit Reinstates Failure-to-Accommodate Claim Against Employer That Terminated Employee With Outstanding Leave Request

Butler Snow LLP on

Once an employee requests an accommodation, the employer has a duty to engage in an “interactive process” to try to determine whether the employer can accommodate the employee’s disability...more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Don’t Fire Me! I’m Drug Free! It Was CBD! Indiana Court Examines Termination for Use of Hemp Oil

In our modern world of a booming CBD industry and an increasing number of states that have legalized marijuana, can you terminate an employee for a positive drug test for marijuana? What if the test shows marijuana...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Use of Opioid Medications By Applicant For Forklift Job Was Not Sufficient to Deny Employment Without Individualized Assessment

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

A federal court in Ohio denied summary judgment to both parties where an employer refused to hire an applicant who used opioid medication as a forklift driver. The court held that there were disputed issues of fact as to...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Consistently Inconsistent: An Example of Shifting Reasons for Employment Termination Precluding Summary Judgment

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas recently denied an employer’s motion for summary judgment when its alleged shifting reasons for terminating the plaintiff’s employment contract raised genuine issues...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Texas Supreme Court Rules Request for Disability Accommodation Does Not Support Retaliation Claim Under State Law

Texas courts generally look to federal courts’ interpretation of federal anti-discrimination laws to assist in interpreting the anti-discrimination provisions of the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act (TCHRA). However, the...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

For Once, Good Deed Goes Unpunished

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

What is an employer’s risk in terminating an employee who has suffered an injury or becomes disabled and no longer can perform the essential functions of the position? How can that risk be lowered?...more

Rivkin Radler LLP

The Employment Law Reporter - Spring 2021

Rivkin Radler LLP on

Here is what we cover in this issue of The Employment Law Reporter: •A federal court in New York has dismissed an employment discrimination lawsuit brought by a former employee of the City University of New York. ...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Alabama Worker’s ADA Suit Runs Out of Air: Federal Court Dismisses Failure to Accommodate and Retaliation Claims

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama recently granted summary judgment to United States Steel Corporation, finding that the company did not deny Raymond Carr III, a former employee with chronic...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Seasonal Employee May Pursue Disability-Based Hostile Work Environment Claim, Court Rules

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Reversing a district court’s grant of summary judgment, the Iowa Court of Appeals held an employee presented sufficient evidence for her disability-based hostile work environment claim to proceed to trial, despite the...more

Laner Muchin, Ltd.

Seventh Circuit Affirms that Multi-Month Leave of Absence Is Not Reasonable Accommodation Under ADA

Laner Muchin, Ltd. on

In a recent opinion, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed that a multi-month leave of absence is not a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)....more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Employer Fitness For Duty Policy Survives Disability Discrimination Claim

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

A district court ruled that a long-time railroad trackman, who was pulled from service following safety complaints from his coworkers and supervisors, failed to prove that he was considered disabled under the ADA, and failed...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Seventh Circuit Continues To Find That Lengthy Leaves Of Absence May Not Be Reasonable Accommodations Under The ADA

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

On December 30, 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued its opinion in McAllister v. Innovation Ventures, LLC, No. 20-1779 (7th Cir., Dec. 30 2020), and held that an employer did not violate the ADA...more

Smith Debnam Narron Drake Saintsing & Myers,...

Fourth Circuit Provides Helpful Guidance to Employers Regarding ADA Reassignment Obligations

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has long taken the position that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires employers to provide a disabled employee reassignment to an alternative position for which...more

ArentFox Schiff

The Fourth Circuit Rules Employers Are Not Required To Reassign Employees as an ADA Accommodation

ArentFox Schiff on

On November 18, 2020, the Fourth Circuit upheld a summary judgment award in favor of Lowe’s Home Centers LLC (Lowe’s), holding that it did not violate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) when a disabled, long-term...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Ninth Circuit Announces Legal Framework for Readily Achievable Barrier Removal Claims Under ADA

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

Seyfarth Synopsis: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals adopts a burden-shifting framework for analyzing claims involving the removal of pre-ADA barriers which requires the plaintiff to “plausibly show how the cost of removing...more

Morrison & Foerster LLP - Left Coast Appeals

This Week at The Ninth: Jersey Boys and Restroom Doors

This week, we highlight Ninth Circuit decisions denying copyright protection to assertions of fact (even if those facts were made up), and deepening a slight Circuit split on the Americans with Disabilites Act's...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

A New Road Map for Disciplining Employees for Reasons Unrelated to Their Disability

Some of the most frequent questions we receive from employers involve managing the performance of employees with medical issues. While employers understand their nondiscrimination obligations under the Americans with...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Ninth Circuit Finds Obesity a Protected Disability Under State Law

In recent years, a number of federal courts have drawn differing conclusions with regard to whether obesity is a protected disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act. While some courts have reached this conclusion,...more

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission...

M&T Bank Will Pay $100,000 to Settle EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit

Bank Failed to Accommodate Manager With Pregnancy-Related Disability, Federal Agency Charged - BALTIMORE - Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company, doing business as M&T Bank, will pay $100,000 and provide significant...more

Carlton Fields

The Game of Forfeiture: Fumbling the Ball and How the Court May Recover It

Carlton Fields on

In the spirit of the upcoming Super Bowl, it is important to keep in mind certain rules of play regarding forfeiture of arguments in federal courts of appeals. The Tenth Circuit reiterated two such rules in recent opinions....more

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