Disability Law

Federal civil rights suits say sign-language interpreters required by ADA are often lacking

A quarter-century after the Americans with Disabilities Act was OK’d by Congress in 1990, noncompliance is still a problem. However, a stream of litigation seeking to enforce ADA requirements is gathering force, and a spate of recent suits addresses a claimed lack of sign-language interpreters for the deaf in a…

Dec 11, 2015 12:50 PM CST

Posner advises disability office to clean up its act, says expert testimony was ‘worthless’

A federal appeals court says an administrative law judge “inappropriately ‘played doctor’” in denying disability benefits for a 56-year-old woman who had worked more than 13 years in a factory where she carried steel sheets weighing up to 100 pounds. The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the…

Dec 9, 2015 6:00 AM CST

Lawsuit says aggravated municipal judge shouted at defendant who sought sign-language interpreter

A New Jersey man who says he was “ignored, humiliated and treated with discrimination and deliberate indifference” when he sought a sign-language interpreter in a traffic ticket case has filed a federal civil rights suit against Newark and its municipal court system. After two court hearings without an interpreter, Chenedu…

Dec 7, 2015 5:00 PM CST

Arrest warrant issued for retired lawyer accused of stealing from disabled client

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of a retired Connecticut lawyer who has been accused of stealing money from a disabled former client. Newington, Connecticut, police have issued the arrest warrant for Michael Schless, 78, now of Boynton Beach, Florida, the Hartford Courant (reg. req.) and the Connecticut…

Dec 4, 2015 3:05 PM CST

Embattled judge in court confrontation video now waging war of words over PTSD finding

A Florida judge who was suspended without pay in October over a courthouse confrontation with an attorney that was partially captured on video, is now in a war of words over his PTSD diagnosis. Brevard County Judge John Murphy is a military veteran who saw combat in Afghanistan. He revealed…

Dec 1, 2015 3:45 PM CST

Employers and workers grapple with laws allowing marijuana use

On June 15, 2015, the Colorado Supreme Court was the ultimate buzzkill. When the state's residents passed a referendum in 2012 legalizing recreational marijuana use—long after the state sanctioned medical use in 2000—few had any idea that Coloradans who partook in the bud would end up jeopardizing their livelihood.

Dec 1, 2015 5:30 AM CST

Disbarred lawyer admits collecting $247K in disability benefits while still in practice

A former New York bankruptcy lawyer who was disbarred and has served time for taking money from clients without doing promised work is in trouble again. Christopher Chadick, 63, pleaded guilty Monday in a Syracuse federal disability fraud case, Syracuse.com reports. He admitted that he obtained $247,000 in Social Security…

Nov 23, 2015 2:00 PM CST

Told to give up gun after shooting alleged burglar, disabled tenant sues landlord

A former Maine lobsterman has sued his landlord, after shooting an intruder at his government-subsidized Rockland apartment earlier this year and being told he must give up his gun or face eviction. Harvey Lembo, 67, uses a wheelchair. He says he got a gun after being burglarized four times by…

Nov 18, 2015 1:35 PM CST

Advocate urges group homes to balance disabled residents’ intimacy needs with safety concerns

In an effort to protect adult residents of Minnesota group homes who have intellectual or cognitive disabilities, emotional issues and/or mental illness, those in charge routinely restrict activities that could lead to or include unsupervised sex. But those restrictions may also limit residents’ legitimate need for intimacy. A number of…

Nov 12, 2015 6:15 AM CST

Appeals judge absent from work 13 months agrees to voluntary unpaid suspension

A Texas appeals court judge who hasn’t been at work for 13 months has announced a plan to take an unpaid six-month suspension. After Justice David Lewis of the Dallas-based Fifth Court of Appeals was asked to comment for a news story, he and his lawyers said he was temporarily…

Nov 5, 2015 4:35 PM CST

11th Circuit strikes down Florida’s involuntary commitment law for intellectually disabled

A federal appeals court has struck down Florida’s involuntary commitment law for people with intellectual disabilities because it does not provide for periodic review of the continued confinement. The Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Thursday, holding that the law violates the due process clause, report Courthouse…

Oct 16, 2015 11:15 AM CDT

2nd Circuit revives depressed medical student’s ADA case over denial of more time to study

A medical student did get due process when he was dismissed by the University at Buffalo School of Medicine. But a federal district judge erred in granting summary judgment to the medical school concerning Maxiam Dean’s claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a federal appeals court ruled last week.…

Oct 16, 2015 9:00 AM CDT

Fired prosecutor sues in effort to get Dallas DA removed from office

A fired Texas prosecutor has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the state against her former boss, seeking to remove Dallas County District Attorney Susan Hawk from office. Filed Tuesday, the Dallas County District Court petition by former administrative chief Cindy Stormer cites claimed incompetence by Hawk to perform the…

Oct 14, 2015 2:20 PM CDT

Judge tosses ADA suit against BigLaw firms, cites plaintiff’s ‘outright speculation’

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit (PDF) contending that BigLaw firms’ reliance on law school rankings in hiring discriminated against the disabled. U.S. District Judge Gerald Pappert of Philadelphia tossed the suit by William Joseph Hanrahan in an Oct. 2 decision, the Legal Intelligencer reports. The decision is a…

Oct 6, 2015 9:43 AM CDT

Ex-judge is awarded $7M by St. Louis jury in disability suit

A former administrative law judge who wanted to work despite his muscular dystrophy but says he was forced by a hostile work environment to go on long-term disability instead was awarded $7 million last week by a St. Louis jury. The award to Matthew Vacca, 55, includes $3 million in…

Oct 2, 2015 4:40 PM CDT