Anxiety over Reasonable Accommodation under the ADA for Social Anxiety Disorder
The National Law Review
Employers might be just a bit more anxious after learning that the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (“EEOC”) defined the “ability to interact with others” as a major life activity, bringing social anxiety disorder into the scope of protection afforded by the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”). The Fourth Circuit, in the case of Jacobs v. N.C. Administrative Office of the Courts,[1]recently agreed with the EEOC that social anxiety disorder may be a disability for ADA purposes. For practical purposes, however, the important takeaway in this case is that reasonable accommodation requests should never be taken lightly and all decisions that adversely affect employees should come with ample documentation.
Employers Asserting ADA Direct Threat Defense Do Not Have to Prove Actual Threat
JD Supra
The Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits employers from discriminating against a qualified person with a disability, or refusing to provide that person with a reasonable accommodation that would allow them to perform the essential functions of their job. However, the ADA provides an affirmative defense when an employer can demonstrate that the employee presents a direct threat of harm to themselves, co-workers or third parties.
Council Challenges Proposed LSAT Disability Accommodations
The National Law Journal
An expert panel’s proposals for liberalizing disability accommodations for the Law School Admission Test would undermine the exam’s integrity, the organization that administers the test has argued in court papers.
The Law School Admission Council appealed the bulk of the panel’s recommendations on Thursday, two months after the experts issued them under a consent decree between the council and the U.S. Department of Justice.