Before getting started on the blog entry for the week, a housekeeping matter in order. Next week, I move my daughter in for her final year of college. So, it is entirely possible that I will not have a blog entry next week. I will definitely be back blogging the week after. Turning to the case of the week, it is a case currently pending before the Second Circuit, Lakrout v. New York State Unified Court System. This blog entry will discuss the district court decision, here. It will then also the amicus brief filed in the Second Circuit by
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Latest from Understanding the ADA
NCAA Five Year Rule Redux: Basketball Player Prevails Under Nebraska Law, But Would Have Also Prevailed Under the ADA/Rehabilitation Act
The ADA just had its 36th year anniversary. Happy anniversary!! In June, I got to visit the George H.W. Bush presidential library where his signing of the ADA is featured prominently. It was pretty neat to see that. Interestingly enough, many years ago when I visited the George W. Bush presidential library in Dallas, Texas, which is definitely worthwhile visiting, especially for its interactive components, there was nary a mention of his signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act. I don’t know if that has changed since then, but I did find it strange considering the impact of
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Bullet Proofing Essential Functions of the Job
This week’s blog entry explores how an employer might go about bulletproofing just what are the essential functions of a job. The case for the week is In the Matter of Rachael Smelyansky v. New York State Office of Gen. Services, here, decided by the State of New York’s Appellate Division on June 11, 2026. As usual, the blog entry is divided into categories and they are: facts; why the defendant failed to establish the essential functions of petitioner’s job; why the defendant failed to establish an undue hardship; why petitioner’s retaliation claim should have survived summary judgment; and
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Qualified/Otherwise Qualified and Failure to Accommodate: Lots of Easy to Understand Thoughts Emanating from the Eighth Circuit
Before getting started on the blog entry of the week, I wanted to pass along that the Federal Bar Association has announced its award recipients for this year. I am quite honored to be the recipient of the Sarah T. Hughes Civil Rights Award (the history of that award can be found here). I pick up the award in September at the national convention in Richmond, Virginia. I also have to make a kind of a speech that I don’t typically make, which should be interesting. I do want to thank all the people along the way that have
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HUD’s AI Bot Take on Emotional Support Animals and Service Animals: It’s A Mess
As I have covered previously, here, it’s a bit of the wild west as to the way forward when it comes to emotional support animals. HUD still doesn’t have anything, but if you plug in assistance animals into the search engine on their website, you get what appears as discussed below. The search engine is an AI bot. My thanks to individuals on the AHEAD (Association on Higher Education and Disabilities), listserv for alerting me to this and raising other related concerns. My thoughts are below. The cutting and pasting is mine from the inquiry I made. As for organization
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A Two For: Thoughts on Trump v. Slaughter and How the Latest NCAA D1 Eligibility Rule Discriminates Against Persons with Disabilities
Hope everyone had a great Fourth of July weekend. I wrote this blog entry while taking a break between watching World Cup games and Wimbledon over the weekend. It’s been a tremendous World Cup and Wimbledon. Also, this month is disability pride month. I recognize being disabled proud isn’t always easy and often depends on the particular disability and even when a person becomes a person with a disability. That said, I am proud to be disability proud.
I thought I would put up a short blog talking about questions raised by a recent United States Supreme Court decision in
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A Criminal Defendant’s Waiver of an Appeal Only Goes So Far
I hope everyone is staying cool with the heat of the summer. Also, the World Cup has been absolutely fascinating even if you are not a soccer fan.
This week’s blog entry explores Hunter v. United States , here, decided by the United States Supreme Court on June 18, 2026. It doesn’t really have anything to do with disabilities per se except that the plaintiff had a disability whose treatment of it was very much an issue. Also, many people with disabilities, both mental and physical, are in the prison system. As usual, the blog entry is divided
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Rooker-Feldman Here to Stay, But What Does it Mean for Persons with Disabilities?
Even if you are not a huge soccer fan, the World Cup has been fascinating to watch. Good luck to whatever team you are rooting for.
It is just about the end of the Supreme Court term, so we can expect a flurry of decisions to come down in the next couple of weeks. They have just come down with two decisions affecting people with disabilities or have fact patterns concerning people with disabilities. This week’s blog entry will talk about T.M. v. University of Maryland Medical System Corporation, here, holding that Rooker-Feldman is here to stay. It
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Thoughts on How Housing Providers Might Move Forward After HUD’s Internal Memorandum
Before getting started on the blog entry for the week, a couple of housekeeping matters in order. First, you can now, if you so desire, listen to my blog instead of reading it even if you are not using a screen reader. I know many people would rather have what they see read to them rather than read it themselves (all you have to do is look at how podcasts are exploding). If you want to listen to one of our blog entries, all you have to do is click on the icon next to the, “listen to this post.”
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Failure to Utilize Internal Reasonable Accommodation Policy Just Might Torpedo a Failure to Accommodate Claim
This week’s blog entry focuses on an unpublished decision, Woodie v. Motorola Solutions, Inc. from the Sixth Circuit decided on March 10, 2025, here. The case highlights the importance of a person with a disability intentionally not pursuing any internal processes for requesting an accommodation. There is well reasoned dissent as well. As usual, the blog entry is divided into categories and they are: the situation; the employer did not have to provide a reasonable accommodation because the employee never asked for one; Judge Mathis concurrence and dissent focusing on why plaintiff did not have to ask for a
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Leave for Training a Service Animal is a Reasonable Accommodation and the Latest from HUD on Emotional Support Animals in Housing
I did mention in my last blog entry that I might not be posting this week. Turns out, I had some time over the Memorial Day weekend to do a post, so here goes. I do hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend.
The blog entry for the week is a two for one that discusses the latest developments from HUD pertaining to ESA’s. It also discusses a published decision from the Sixth Circuit decided May 13, 2026, talking about whether leave (unpaid or paid), is a reasonable accommodation for a person needing to train their service dog. That
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Enacted Georgia Legislation with Implications Everywhere
As readers know, I rarely blog more than once a week, but it does happen from time to time. This week is a really good week for me to blog twice because the Georgia legislature just completed the session with two bills signed by the Governor of Georgia on topics that we have covered quite a bit. Also, as I mentioned in my last blog entry, I may be taking a two week hiatus with my daughter coming in after the end of the school year for two weeks before she heads off for an internship. The Governor of Georgia has
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DOJ Service Animal Rules Might Just Stop at the State Hospital or Prison’s Gate
I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend.
Today’s blog entry comes by way of University of Iowa Clinical Law Professor Emeritus Leonard Sandler who sent me the appellate decision in the case. After reading the appellate decision, which can be found here, I had to read the trial court decision as well. The appellate decision basically says the trial court got it right when it denied a mandatory injunction, but is otherwise rather light on analysis and what the case is all about. The case of the day concerns Solan v. Arizona, which was decided by the
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What’s in a Name Matters: Is it Coaching or is it Impermissible Medical Exams/Disability Related Inquiries
This week’s blog entry is a case that has been previously blogged on by others in the blogosphere. Robin Shea in her blog blogged on our case of the week, here. However, as readers know, there are occasions where I will blog on a case that someone else has talked about first when I think I can offer my own perspective. This week’s blog entry is such a case. The case of the week is Carney v. Emory University, an unpublished decision from the 11th Circuit decided on April 15, 2026, here. By way of full disclosure, I
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The Scope of the Ending Forced Arbitration Act When it Comes to Related Claims
Before getting started on the blog entry for the week, last week, the Federal Bar Association blog posted my piece on the interactive process. It’s an unusual piece of writing in that it talks about the step-by-step approach to the interactive process AND the psychological overtones of the process. Again, as I mentioned in that piece, my thanks to Robin Shea of Constangy Brooks for her blog entry on the step-by-step approach to the interactive process and for allowing me to borrow her steps and refine it from my perspective. You can find the Federal Bar Association blog piece here
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Showing that Removal of Architectural Barriers is not Readily Achievable Doesn’t End the Analysis
This week’s blog entry focuses on what happens if assuming for the sake of argument, renovations are not readily achievable at a place of public accommodation, whether that ends the analysis. The answer is no. The case also discusses just how the burden of proof works with respect to claiming that an accommodation is readily achievable. Our case of the day is Lopez v. Catalina Channel Express Inc. 10, 974 F.3d 1030 (9th Cir. 2020), here. This case also sets an Understanding the ADA record for being decided six years before blogging on the case. Even so, the case
Continue Reading Showing that Removal of Architectural Barriers is not Readily Achievable Doesn’t End the Analysis