Job Description Mistakes You Don’t Want to Make
In a decision that may rattle employers nationwide, a federal appeals court recently revived an Army veteran’s ADA suit against her employer for delaying her request to bring a service dog to work, despite eventually granting...more
The split among federal circuit courts of appeal as to whether a disabled worker must show harm in bringing a failure to accommodate claim continues. Recently, the Fifth Circuit joined the majority of circuits in finding that...more
Earlier this month, in Strife v. Aldine Independent School District, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals held that an employer’s delayed accommodation of an employee’s disability could amount to a failure to accommodate under...more
When an employee requests an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act, this sets into motion an interactive process intended to determine whether the requested accommodation is both reasonable and effective....more
This decision surrounds the case of Alisha Strife v. Aldine Independent School District, in which the plaintiff, a U.S. Army veteran employed in the school district’s Human Resources department, requested an accommodation for...more
On April 7, 2025, New Mexico became the third state to legalize psilocybin (colloquially known as “magic mushrooms” or “shrooms”) for medical purposes. New Mexico is the first state to legalize psilocybin via legislation and...more
Employers are increasing the push for employees to return to physical workplaces. Whether through flexible hybrid models or return-to-office mandates, companies are reevaluating what work looks like in a post-pandemic world....more
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) may require an employer to accommodate a disability even when an employee could perform the job without it. That is the upshot of the recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for...more
A Pennsylvania federal court recently ruled that a job applicant who had a job offer rescinded could not allege disability discrimination under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act (PHRA) for medical marijuana use as a matter...more
A federal appeals court recently clarified that an employee may qualify for a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) even if they can perform essential job functions without such an...more
The Americans with Disabilities Act defines a protected qualified individual as one who can perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodations. ...more
On March 25, 2025, in Tudor v. Whitehall Central School District, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated the Northern District of New York’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the Whitehall...more
Last week, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals announced a significant change to the standard by which employers must address disability-related accommodation requests. In Tudor v. Whitehall Central School District, Case No....more
Employers in New York, Connecticut, and Vermont should take note of a recent Second Circuit decision holding that an employee may still be entitled to a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act...more
Interesting decision this week from a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. A high school math teacher (we’ll call her “Ms. Plantagenet”) had post-traumatic stress disorder. Years earlier, her...more
Employers beware. In Roque v. Octapharma Plasma Inc., a California jury delivered an award of over $11 million to an individual plaintiff in an employment discrimination case despite the absence of economic damages for wages...more
Employers in Florida should take note of a recent ruling that could have far-reaching implications for managing reasonable accommodation requests related to workers’ medical cannabis use. A Florida county court just sided...more
While motions for summary judgment are usually tricky to obtain in fact-laden employment cases alleging discrimination, failure to accommodate, and failure to engage in the interactive process, the Court of Appeal recently...more
On October 17, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas entered summary judgment in favor of the Unified Government of Wyandotte County/Kansas City, Kansas, as representative of the Kansas City Board of Public...more
The Seventh Circuit’s recent decision – holding that an employee’s request for a second chance that allows them to change their behavior to meet employer expectations is not a “reasonable accommodation” under the ADA –...more
This month, the California Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s grant of summary adjudication to the employer in a disability discrimination case alleging violations of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). The...more
The federal agency that enforces workplace anti-discrimination laws is suing an employer for allegedly failing to accommodate an employee’s known pregnancy-related limitations, the first-ever lawsuit filed under the new...more
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently announced a settlement to resolve a discrimination charge alleging an employer terminated a pregnant employee after she requested a reasonable accommodation to...more
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
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw a number of federal court decisions involving disability discrimination claims from teachers who requested full-time remote work as an accommodation for compromised immune systems or other...more