Job Accommodation
Network consultants often get inquiries asking for information on
Supreme Court rulings that address the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (ADA). The links below provide information on these rulings.
This page is merely assimilated as a convenience to our users and
does not indicate endorsement or provide interpretation.
2004
Tennessee
v. Lane (2004) Decided May 17, 2004
Issue-State Immunity: Whether Title II of the Americans with
Disabilities Act, as it applies to the class of cases implicating
the accessibility of judicial services, is a valid exercise of Congress'
§5 enforcement power.
2003
Raytheon Co.
v. Hernandez (2003) Decided December 2, 2003
Issue-Definition of Employee: Whether the ADA confers preferential
rehire rights on disabled employees lawfully terminated for violating
workplace conduct rules.
Clackamas
Gastroenterology Associates, P.C. v. Wells (2003) Decided April
22, 2003
Issue-Definition of Employee: Whether four physicians actively
engaged in medical practice as shareholders and directors of a professional
corporation should be counted as "employees."
2002
Barnes v.
Gorman, No. 01-682 (2002) Decided June 17, 2002
Issue-Punitive Damages:
Whether punitive damages may be awarded in a private cause of
action brought under section 202 of the ADA and section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act.
Chevron
v. Echazabal, No. 00-1406 (2002) Decided June 10, 2002
Issue-Direct Threat:
Whether the EEOC's regulation recognizing a threat-to-self defense
exceeded the scope of permissible rulemaking under the ADA.
U.S. Airways,
Inc. v. Barnett, 122 S. Ct. 1516 (2002) Decided April 29, 2002
Issue-Reasonable Accommodation:
When an employee with a disability seeks reassignment as an
accommodation under the ADA, does that employee's right to reasonable
accommodation trump another employee's seniority rights when the
employer has a seniority system?
Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission v. Waffle House, Inc., 122 S.Ct. 754 (2002)
Decided January 15, 2002
Issue-Arbitration:
Whether an agreement between an employee and an employer to
arbitrate employment-related disputes bars the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC) from pursuing victim-specific judicial
relief, such as back pay, reinstatement, and damages, in an enforcement
action alleging that the employer has violated Title I of the ADA.
Toyota Motor
Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc. v. Williams, 534 U.S. 184 (2002)
Decided January 8, 2002
Issue-Definition of
Disability: How do you determine whether an individual is substantially
limited in the major life activity of performing manual tasks?
2001
Buckhannon
Board and Care Home, Inc. v. W. Va. Dep't of Health and Human Res.,
532 U.S. 598 (2001) Decided May 29, 2001
Issue-Attorneys Fees:
Whether a party that has failed to secure a judgment on the
merits or a court-ordered consent decree, but has nonetheless achieved
the desired result because the lawsuit brought about a voluntary
change in the defendants conduct, is entitled to attorney's fees
and costs.
PGA Tour,
Inc. v. Martin, 532 U.S. 661, 532 U.S. 661 (2001) Decided May
29, 2001
Issue-Scope of Title
III: Whether Title III of the ADA protects access to professional
golf tournaments by a qualified entrant with a disability; and whether
a contestant with a disability may be denied the use of a golf cart
because it would fundamentally alter the nature of the tournaments
to allow him to ride when all other contestants must walk.
Board of
Trustees of the University of Alabama v. Garrett, 531 U.S. 356
(2001) Decided February 21, 2001
Issue-State Immunity:
Whether the Eleventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution bars state
employees from suing their state employers in federal court for
monetary damages.
1999
Cleveland
v. Policy Management Systems Corp., 526 U.S. 795 (1999) Decided
May 24, 1999
Issue-Estoppel: Whether
a person who applies for and receives Social Security Disability
Insurance (SSDI) can also pursue an action for disability discrimination
under the ADA, claiming that "with . . . reasonable accommodation"
she could "perform the essential functions" of her job.
Albertson's,
Inc. v. Kirkingburg, 527 U.S. 555 (1999) Decided June 22, 1999
Issue-Definition of
Disability: Whether, under the ADA, an employer who requires
as a job qualification that an employee meet an otherwise applicable
federal safety regulation must justify enforcing the regulation
solely because its standard may be waived in an individual case.
Murphy v.
United Parcel Service, 527 U.S. 516 (1999) Decided June 22, 1999
Issue-Definition of
Disability: Whether, under the ADA, the determination of whether
an individual's impairment "substantially limits" one
or more major life activities should be made without consideration
of mitigating measures and whether the fact that an employer regarded
an individual as unable to obtain Department of Transportation (DOT)
certification is sufficient to show that the employer regarded the
individual as having a disability under ADA.
Sutton v.
United Airlines, 527 U.S. 471 (1999) Decided June 22, 1999
Issue-Definition of
Disability: Whether, under the ADA, the determination of whether
an individual's impairment "substantially limits" one
or more major life activities should be made without consideration
of mitigating measure, including, in this case, eyeglasses and contact
lenses.
Olmstead
v. L.C., 527 U.S. 581 (1999) Decided June 22, 1999
Issue-Scope of Title
II: Whether Title II of the ADA may require placement of persons
with mental disabilities in community settings rather than in institutions.
1998
Wright
v. Universal Maritime Service Corp., 525 U.S. 70 (1998) Decided
November 16, 1998
Issue-Arbitration:
Whether a general arbitration clause in a collective-bargaining
agreement (CBA) requires an employee to use the arbitration procedure
for an alleged violation of the ADA.
Bragdon
v. Abbott, 524 U.S. 624 (1998) Decided June 25, 1998
Issue-Definition of
Disability and Direct Threat: Whether asymptomatic HIV infection
is a disability under the ADA, and when determining whether an individual
with HIV poses a direct threat to a health care provider, should
the courts defer to the provider's professional judgment?
Pennsylvania
Department of Corrections v. Yeskey, 524 U.S. 206 (1998) Decided
June 15, 1998
Issue-Scope of Title
II: Whether Title II of the ADA covers state prisons and prisoners.
