Disability Discrimination

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In Duarte v. St. Barnabas Hospital, 15-CV-6824, 2018 WL 4440501 (S.D.N.Y. Sept. 17, 2018) – a disability discrimination case – the court held, inter alia, that a jury award of $624,000 for compensatory/emotional distress damages was too high, and that $125,000 was more appropriate. To do this, the court employed the procedural mechanism of “remittitur.” After explaining…

Read More Court Explains Remittitur of $624,000 Emotional Distress Damages Award to $125,000 in Disability Discrimination Case
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Federal, state, and local anti-discrimination laws prohibit discrimination based on, among other factors, “disability.” That term is, in turn, defined in the statutes themselves. For example, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C.A. § 12101 et seq., defines a “disability” as: “(A) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major…

Read More Is Obesity a “Disability” Under the Anti-Discrimination Laws?
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In Matter of 130-10 Food Corp. v. New York State Div. of Human Rights, 2018 NY Slip Op 08123 (App. Div. 2nd Dept. Nov. 28, 2018), the court held that employment (disability) discrimination claim should be dismissed on statute-of-limitations grounds. The court explained: “Pursuant to Executive Law § 297(5), a complainant seeking redress under the [New…

Read More Disability Discrimination Claim Dismissed Against One Respondent as Time Barred; “Relation Back” Doctrine Inapplicable
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From Perez v. Mason Tenders District Council, 17-3896 (2d Circuit Nov. 21, 2018) (Summary Order): Perez concedes in her opening brief, as she did before the district court, that her complaint was filed outside the 90-day window she had from receiving the EEOC’s rightto-sue letter to bring her claim. Nevertheless, she maintains that the limitations…

Read More ADA Disability Discrimination Claim Properly Dismissed as Filed Beyond the 90-Day EEOC Notice
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In Vitti v Macy’s Inc., No. 152875/2018, 2018 WL 5787308, 2018 N.Y. Slip Op. 32809(U) (Sup Ct, New York County Nov. 05, 2018), the court granted defendant’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s claims for disability discrimination and retaliation under the New York State and City Human Rights Laws. This case was not decided based on the merits,…

Read More Disability Discrimination & Retaliation Claims Dismissed on “Procedural” Grounds
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In Schmitt v. City of New York et al, 15-CV-05992, 2018 WL 5777019 (E.D.N.Y. Nov. 1, 2018), the court, inter alia, denied defendants’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s disability-related hostile work environment claims. This decision teaches, among other things, that the facts underlying such claims must be evaluated as a whole, rather than piecemeal.…

Read More Disability-Related Hostile Work Environment Claims Survive Summary Judgment
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In Dooley v. JetBlue Airways Corp., 17-2899 (2d Cir. Sept. 25, 2018) (Summary Order) affirmed the district court’s summary judgment dismissal,[1]Dooley v. JetBlue Airways Corp., No. 14-CV-4432, 2017 WL 3738721 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 29, 2017.) following discovery, of plaintiff’s disability discrimination claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The court explained, inter alia: “Although Dooley disputes…

Read More Second Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Disability Discrimination Claim Against JetBlue
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In A. Anonymous v. Mount Sinai Hospital, 2018 WL 4567945, 2018 NY Slip Op 06212 (N.Y.A.D. 1 Dept. Sept. 25, 2018), the Appellate Division, First Department unanimously affirmed the Supreme Court’s order granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment dismissing plaintiff’s disability discrimination claim under the New York City Human Rights Law. Central to the court’s…

Read More Citing Lack of Knowledge of HIV, First Department Affirms Dismissal of Disability Discrimination Claim
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In a recent decision, Wolfinger v. Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc., 17-cv-1710, 2018 WL 3637964 (E.D.N.Y. July 31, 2018), the court, inter alia, explained and clarified what, exactly, a plaintiff must allege to sufficiently plead a failure-to-accommodate claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The court explained: A plaintiff bringing a failure-to-accommodate claim…

Read More Court Clarifies “Failure to Accommodate Disability” Employment Discrimination Claim: Wolfinger v. ConEd
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