Jury awards $638K to mom who sued over claimed sex abuse of adult daughter; defense argued consent

A jury has awarded $638,000 to the plaintiff in an unusual Connecticut lawsuit filed by a mother over claimed sexual abuse of her highly intelligent but mentally ill adult daughter. The first time around, the jury in the Stamford Superior Court case reached a defense verdict for Craig Martise, a…

Nov 18, 2014 3:39 PM CST

Sightless disability lawyer wins supreme court bid with hugs and ‘blind justice’ campaign slogan

Corrected: A disability lawyer who won election to the Michigan Supreme Court last Tuesday will become the state’s first blind state high court justice. Richard Bernstein funded his campaign with $2 million, paying for commercials in which he allied himself with “the people” and used a “blind justice” campaign slogan,…

Nov 10, 2014 5:45 AM CST

Irrational Ebola fears led officials to ban girl from school, ADA suit alleges

A Connecticut dad claims in a federal lawsuit that school officials in Milford, Connecticut, violated the Americans with Disabilities Act when they kept his daughter home from school because of irrational fears about Ebola. The suit by Stephen Opayemi says his 7-year-old daughter was in Nigeria where she was a…

Oct 29, 2014 12:10 PM CDT

When are wellness programs too punitive? EEOC says two companies crossed the line

Employee wellness programs that encourage healthy lifestyles are all the rage, but some companies may be violating federal law with onerous penalties for workers who don’t participate, according to two lawsuits filed this year by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The most recent suit was filed last week against Wisconsin-based…

Oct 9, 2014 5:45 AM CDT

Lawyers fight for defendant’s right to use accessible courthouse restroom

A defendant who uses a wheelchair began wearing diapers to the Manhattan criminal courthouse after she wasn’t allowed to use an accessible restroom last year. Accused credit-card scammer Banetta Grant was in the holding pen so many hours without a restroom that she urinated on herself before appearing in court,…

Oct 8, 2014 8:33 AM CDT

Should ADA protections apply to pedophiles?

Acknowledging that pedophilia is a mental disorder—and removing barriers for treatment—would better protect children, says an assistant professor at Rutgers School of Law. Writing for the New York Times’ opinion section, Margo Kaplan notes that the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act exclude people with pedophilia, a DSM-defined…

Oct 6, 2014 3:54 PM CDT

Do job personality tests discriminate? EEOC probes lawyer’s complaint, filed on behalf of his son

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is investigating a lawyer’s complaint, filed on behalf of his son, that claims well-known companies discriminate against the mentally ill through the use of personality tests in job screening. Roland Behm, a former in-house counsel at Nokia Corp., filed discrimination charges with the EEOC on…

Sep 30, 2014 8:08 AM CDT

Fired John Doe prosecutor can remain anonymous in suit against Justice Department, judge rules

A federal prosecutor who claims he was wrongly fired because of an anxiety disorder can keep his name a secret in his lawsuit against the U.S. Justice Department, a federal judge has ruled. U.S. District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson said the John Doe plaintiff could have trouble doing his job…

Sep 11, 2014 5:45 AM CDT

Popeyes Chicken franchisee agrees to settle HIV discrimination claim with EEOC

A Shreveport, Louisiana-based Popeyes Chicken franchisee has agreed to pay $25,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging that it refused to hire an HIV-positive man because of his disability. Under a consent decree with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the franchisee, Famous Chicken of Shreveport, which owns and operates restaurants…

Sep 8, 2014 2:25 PM CDT

Program will mobilize lawyers to help reduce VA claims processing backlog

Sep 1, 2014 7:20 AM CDT

Posner opinion takes aim at denial of disability benefits; is it a 7th Circuit trend?

In a published opinion issued two weeks after oral argument, the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has overturned the denial of disability benefits to a woman who claimed severe pain because of a herniated disc. The two-week turnaround by the author of the opinion (PDF), Judge Richard Posner,…

Aug 21, 2014 10:45 AM CDT

Delaware is first state to adopt model law that says social media accounts can be inherited

When individuals die their social media accounts often expire along with them. Even if their loved ones have the passwords, terms of use for Facebook and other providers routinely restrict account-sharing. But a uniform law that Delaware reportedly has become the first state to enact changes this expectation, recognizing social…

Aug 20, 2014 4:20 PM CDT

Louisiana Supreme Court settles ADA probe by DOJ over mental-health queries on bar application

The Louisiana Supreme Court has agreed to settle a U.S. Department of Justice probe over claims that some mental-health questions on the state’s bar application could violate the Americans with Disabilities Act. Specifically, the DOJ found that those involved in evaluating bar applications have been making admission recommendations focused on…

Aug 18, 2014 8:40 PM CDT

Worker who robbed bank of $565K in fake-bomb scenario now faces new charge over disability claim

There’s new trouble for a California woman already sentenced to nine years for conspiring with her boyfriend to rob a Los Angeles bank of $565,500 by pretending to be kidnapped and strapped to a fake bomb. Aurora Barrera is now facing a fraud charge over a related disability claim. Prosecutors…

Aug 11, 2014 10:21 PM CDT

Preserve election process in emergencies, ensure voting rights of disabled, ABA House measures say

The ABA House of Delegates has adopted a policy urging states, localities and territories to develop written contingency plans to preserve the election process in the event of an emergency. Resolution 113A (PDF) says such plans should include at a minimum: alternative locations and times for conducting elections; backup and…

Aug 11, 2014 10:06 PM CDT