No Food Stamps for Service Dog, But His Disabled Owner May Now Have a Lawyer

A service dog doesn’t qualify for food stamps, a Pennsylvania court has ruled, because he isn’t human. But the animal’s disabled owner, James Douris, may not have to argue the legal issue on his own much longer. Although he lost a pro se Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court case arguing that the…

Apr 7, 2010 7:24 PM CDT

Who Let the Dogs In?

Non-visually impaired kids are bringing their aide dogs to class

Apr 1, 2010 7:30 AM CDT

Service Animals Now Welcome at Office of Lawyer Sued for Banning Dog

A Colorado lawyer will pay $50,000 and his law firm will post a “Service Animals Welcome” sign to settle a Justice Department complaint that he refused to allow a brain-damaged woman to bring her service dog to a deposition at his offices. Attorney Patric LeHouillier of Colorado Springs will also…

Mar 31, 2010 12:08 PM CDT

Suit Claims School Didn’t Prevent Bullying That Drove Autistic Youth to Suicide

The parents of a 17-year-old autistic youth who committed suicide last October claim in a lawsuit that his Georgia school district and its principal failed to prevent the bullying that led to his depression. The federal lawsuit filed by the parents of Tyler Lee Long claims the school violated the…

Mar 22, 2010 1:23 PM CDT

Judge Strikes ‘Scandalous’ Allegations in Associate’s Suit Against Sedgwick

An associate who claimed in a lawsuit that he suffered a breakdown partly because of “abusive conduct” by a partner at Sedgwick Detert Moran & Arnold included “scandalous” and irrelevant details in his complaint for disability discrimination, a Manhattan judge has ruled. Judge James Yates struck as prejudicial claims that…

Mar 22, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

Detroit to Tell Workers to Tone Down Scented Products Under ADA Settlement

The scent of litigation success isn’t a sweet smell for at least one plaintiff who recently won a $100,000 settlement in a federal Americans with Disabilities Act discrimination case. As part of the pact in the federal lawsuit filed by planner Susan McBride, the city of Detroit has agreed to…

Mar 16, 2010 5:16 PM CDT

Real Estate Realities

Mar 1, 2010 11:10 AM CST

Employment Lawyers Cringe at Proposal to Add Gambling, Binge Eating to Mental Disorder List

In a development that is drawing fire from management-side employment lawyers, the American Psychiatric Association wants binge eating and excess gambling to be considered psychiatric disorders. The APA has asked that the problems be listed in the Diagnosis and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, a fifth edition of which is…

Feb 12, 2010 1:58 PM CST

Blind Student’s Bar Exam Battle Isn’t Over: Test Firm Seeks Emergency 9th Cir. Software Ban

A federal judge’s ruling last month that Stephanie Enyart must be allowed to use screen-reader software when taking the Multistate Bar Examination might not be the final answer for the blind law graduate. In a filing yesterday, the National Conference of Bar Examiners seeks an emergency ruling from the San…

Feb 10, 2010 10:31 PM CST

Judge, 68, Abruptly Retires; Former Court Reporter May Have Helped with Cases

When veteran court reporter Don Rymer was indicted (and eventually agreed to a plea bargain) over a missing trial transcript, it wasn’t just his own career that was adversely affected. A 68-year-old Texas judge who abruptly resigned this week after, observers say, experiencing problems with dementia, may have relied on…

Feb 4, 2010 9:59 PM CST

Would-Be Law Student Files Suit Claiming ADHD Merits More Time for LSAT

A Texas man has filed a federal lawsuit claiming he needs twice the time to take the Law School Admission Test because of his attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Matthew Scott Jones of Austin says in the suit that he skipped the LSAT in September 2009 because the Law School Admissions…

Feb 4, 2010 1:59 PM CST

Judge Sides With Blind UCLA Law Grad, OKs Software to Read Bar Exam

Stephanie Enyart isn’t yet admitted in California, but the University of California-Los Angeles School of Law grad has already won what presumably is her first case. A federal judge in San Francisco ruled today that Enyart, who is blind, has a right to use the screen-reader computer software she wants…

Jan 30, 2010 12:00 AM CST

Blind Law Grad Sues Over Bar Exam’s Human, Rather than Computer, Readers

A blind graduate of UCLA law school plans to take the bar exam in February, and she hopes she will be able to use a computer program that reads the text aloud. The State Bar of California allows use of the computer assisted reader for its section of the exam,…

Jan 6, 2010 6:53 PM CST

Good Rx for Employers

If you thought keeping your office swine-flu-free was all you needed to worry about this flu season, you may be headed for a rude awakening. Labor and employment attorneys are fielding an epidemic of questions from clients about how to best inoculate themselves against liability regarding their office policies about…

Jan 2, 2010 4:20 AM CST

Lawyer Sues Quadriplegic Ex-Girlfriend for Custody of Their Baby Son

Obviously, a mother who cannot walk, feels nothing from the chest down and has only limited use of her arms faces certain challenges when caring for an infant. But are they sufficient reason for a judge to take away custody of her child? That is a central question in a…

Dec 21, 2009 6:17 PM CST