Jon Hyman’s blog is in my blogroll and I want to thank him for calling to my attention the case of Sjostrand v. The Ohio State University. Jon, as always, did a great job in his blog entry, but I want to take a different approach. What I want to discuss is how this
Title I
Is attendance always an essential function of the job?
By William Goren on
When the ADA first was enacted back in 1990 and went into effect in 1992, the Internet was just getting started. Back then, it was pretty obvious to everyone that an essential function of the job must mean showing up for it. Since then, technology has evolved quite a bit so now many people can…
What Kennedy Giveth Scalia Taketh Away?
By William Goren on
I want to wish all those celebrating Passover, which started yesterday, and Easter, which is Sunday, a happy holiday.
This blog entry is divided into separate categories, but unlike my usual system, the categories are little bit different. Here we have: introductory comments, the case that is the subject of this blog entry (Burrage…
Third-party administrators and the risk of being an employer
By William Goren on
It is not unusual for companies of all sizes to outsource their HR functions and/or their benefit administration, though outsourcing their benefits administration is probably more common. What happens if the third party administrator starts making employment decisions for the company whose benefits they are administering? In that situation, there is a risk that the…
Exhaustion of administrative remedies redux: when is a party on notice?
By William Goren on
The stereotype of judges is that they are boring and wouldn’t relate well to an audience. I have attended several CLE’s where judges were the speakers, and that stereotype is just not true. Of course, some are better than others, but that is true with every speaker you here. One of the great CLE speakers,…
Suing state court system redux
By William Goren on
One of my more popular blog entries is the blog entry that discusses suing a state court system for disability discrimination . Here is another case along those lines. In Phillips v. New Hampshire Circuit Court, Eighth Circuit, District Division, 2014 WL 495656 (D. N.H. February 5, 2014) (unpublished decision), the plaintiff had a…
DOJ brings the hammer down on the State of Lousiana’s bar licensing authority
By William Goren on
I’m going to be off next week, and so I thought I would blog on this one since it is something I have talked about before.
Previously, I blogged on a South Dakota Supreme Court case and talked about the difficulty a person with MH has in passing the character and fitness gauntlet. I also…
Temporary disabilities and the ADA
By William Goren on
Posted in ADA, Final Federal Regulations, Proposed Federal Regulations, Title I, Title II, Title III
In the first and second editions of my book, understanding the ADA, I cited to the case of Burch v. Coca-Cola Company, 119 F.3d 305 (5th Cir. 1997), for the proposition that temporary disabilities are not protected by the ADA. However, I did say as a preventive manner, it made sense to treat temporary…
ADA and Mediation/Arbitration: Things to Think About
By William Goren on
The ADA and alternative dispute resolution are two concepts that mesh very well together. The ADA itself has language in it encouraging dispute resolution. In fact, both the EEOC and the Department of Justice have mediation programs dealing with ADA lawsuits. Also, with the courts having a very favorable view towards arbitrating claims, arbitration has…
The perils of relying on a physical exam subsequent to a conditional job offer
By William Goren on
The ADA allows a physical exam to be made after a conditional job offer. That is, it is perfectly permissible under the ADA to offer a person a job conditionally subsequent to taking a physical. If the employer denies employment after the physical exam (i.e. takes back the conditional job offer), the employer must do…