On April 19, 2020, Judge James V. Selna of the United States District Court, Central District of California, granted a motion to declare pro se plaintiff Peter Strojnik, Sr. a vexatious litigant, requiring him to obtain the permission of the Court before filing any future accessibility lawsuits with the District Court. Federal courts by statute
ADA
Class Action Suit Claims ADA Requires Public Accommodation to Prevent Spread of COVID-19 at Facility
By Joseph J. Lynett on
Posted in ADA - Title III, COVID-19
Despite significant legal obstacles, on May 4, 2020, a group of plaintiffs filed a class action complaint alleging the Queens Adult Care Center (QACC) violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (Title III) and its precursor, Section 504 of Rehabilitation Act (Section 504), by failing to provide a level of care to safeguard…
In Wave of Opinions, Court Rejects ADA Requirement for Braille Gift Cards
Posted in ADA - Title III
On Friday, April 23, 2020, Judge Gregory Woods of the Southern District of New York issued a first of its kind decision rejecting the argument that ADA Title III requires business that offer gift cards to also offer them in Braille. Dominguez v. Banana Republic, LLC, 1:19-cv-10171-GHW (S.D.N.Y. April 23, 2020). The decision is…
EEOC Opines on COVID-19 Testing by Employers
In the past few weeks, the EEOC has updated its What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws on multiple occasions. The EEOC’s most recent update to this informal guidance provides an answer to the following question: “May an employer administer a COVID-19 test (a test…
Navigating Employer Obligations to Provide Employees with Masks, Face Coverings
By Tressi L. Cordaro & Cressinda D. Schlag on
As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continues to study COVID-19, the agency is regularly updating guidance on precautionary measures to further prevent the spread of COVID-19 across the United States. The agency has expanded its recommended precautions to include “wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where social distancing measures are difficult
…
EEOC Releases Recorded Webinar Addressing Important Questions
By Patricia Anderson Pryor & Tara K. Burke on
The EEOC published a recorded webinar on March 27. The EEOC uses a Q and A format to address 22 common questions from employers covering a broad range of topics including among other things, taking employees temperatures, appropriate and inappropriate disclosure of information related to an employee’s COVID-19 diagnosis, and managing employee accommodation requests including…
Fifth Circuit Affirms “My Disability Made Me Do It” is No Excuse for Sleeping on the Job
Posted in ADA
Clark v. Champion National Security, Incorporated (No. 18-11613, January 14, 2020) is the Fifth Circuit’s latest statement on whether the Americans with Disabilities Act (the “ADA”) requires an employer to excuse terminable misconduct—here, sleeping on the job—based on an employee’s after-the-fact, disability-related explanation. It does not.
Clark, an insulin-dependent Type II diabetic, was a personnel…
What Am I Doing Wrong?? Common FMLA Mistakes
By Sheri L. Giger & Sean P. Dawson on
“What did I do wrong?” and “Am I doing this correctly?” are frequent questions from clients regarding FMLA administration. This is the 27th blog in this series, which digs into the FMLA regulations and related issues to address discrete mis-steps that can result in legal liability.
Filling an employee’s position while…
The SCOTUS Decides Not To Grant Certiorari in Robles v. Domino’s Pizza
By Joseph J. Lynett on
Posted in Disability Accommodation
The much-anticipated decision from the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) on Domino’s Pizza’s Petition for Certiorari is in. On October 7, 2019, the SCOTUS denied review of a decision from the Ninth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals in Robles v. Domino’s Pizza. The Ninth Circuit in Robles held that (1) Title III of the ADA…
Can You Be “Regarded as” Disabled Based on a Potential Future Disability?
By Katrin U. Schatz on
Posted in ADA
This certainly sounds futuristic. (Pun intended.) Still, in a case just decided by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, EEOC v. STME, LLC, the EEOC espoused precisely this position.
The EEOC sued STME for disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act on behalf of Kimberly Lowe, a former STME massage therapist. Lowe was…