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Full-Text Articles in Disability Law
The Future Of Disability Rights Protections For Transgender People, Kevin M. Barry, Jennifer Levi
The Future Of Disability Rights Protections For Transgender People, Kevin M. Barry, Jennifer Levi
Faculty Scholarship
The Americans with Disabilities Act and its predecessor, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“Section 504”), protect people from discrimination based on disability, but not if the disability is one of three archaic medical conditions associated with transgender people: “transvestism,” “transsexualism,” and “gender identity disorders not resulting from physical impairments.” This Article describes the origins of transgender exclusion and discusses why a growing number of federal courts find this exclusion does not apply to gender dysphoria, a new and distinct medical diagnosis. Further, the Authors define the future of disability rights protections for transgender people.
Blatt V. Cabela's Retail, Inc. And A New Path For Transgender Rights, Kevin M. Barry, Jennifer L. Levi
Blatt V. Cabela's Retail, Inc. And A New Path For Transgender Rights, Kevin M. Barry, Jennifer L. Levi
Faculty Scholarship
Since the Supreme Court recognized marriage equality in Obergefell v. Hodges, civil rights advocates have increasingly set their sights on transgender rights as the next legal frontier. Sex discrimination law, though an essential statutory tool, is not the only potential avenue for securing rights for transgender individuals. Another important federal source of protection for transgender people is disability rights law—in particular, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Disability rights law, unlike sex discrimination law, applies to public accommodations and government services, and also mandates reasonable accommodations. A transgender litigant successfully invoked the protections of the ADA for the first time …
A Bare Desire To Harm: Transgender People And The Equal Protection Clause, Kevin M. Barry, Brian Farrell, Jennifer Levi, Neelima Vanguri
A Bare Desire To Harm: Transgender People And The Equal Protection Clause, Kevin M. Barry, Brian Farrell, Jennifer Levi, Neelima Vanguri
Faculty Scholarship
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges establishing marriage equality for same-sex couples marks a major shift in recognizing gay, lesbian, and bisexual people as a central part of the fabric of American society. Obergefell also marks the passing of the torch from “LGB” to “T”; the next civil rights frontier belongs to transgender people, for whom key barriers still remain. In January 2015, a transgender woman filed an equal protection challenge to a provision of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), which explicitly excludes several medical conditions closely associated with transgender people. In support of this challenge, …
Gilbert Redux: The Interaction Of The Pregnancy Discrimination Act And The Amended Americans With Disabilities Act, Deborah Widiss
Gilbert Redux: The Interaction Of The Pregnancy Discrimination Act And The Amended Americans With Disabilities Act, Deborah Widiss
Articles by Maurer Faculty
Pregnancy — a health condition that only affects women — raises complicated questions regarding the interaction of employment policies addressing sex discrimination and those addressing disability. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), enacted in 1978, mandates that employers “shall” treat pregnant employees “the same for all employment-related purposes” as other employees “similar in their ability or inability to work.” Despite the clarity of this language, some courts permit employers to treat pregnant employees less favorably than employees with other health conditions, so long as the employer does so pursuant to a “pregnancy-blind” policy such as accommodating only workplace injuries or disabilities …
Race, Sex And Genes At Work: Uncovering The Lessons Of Norman-Bloodsaw, Elizabeth Pendo
Race, Sex And Genes At Work: Uncovering The Lessons Of Norman-Bloodsaw, Elizabeth Pendo
All Faculty Scholarship
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (“GINA”) is the first federal, uniform protection against the use of genetic information in both the workplace and health insurance. Signed into law on May 21, 2008, GINA prohibits an employer or health insurer from acquiring or using an individual’s genetic information, with some exceptions. One of the goals of GINA is to eradicate actual, or perceived, discrimination based on genetic information in the workplace and in health insurance. Although the threat of genetic discrimination is often discussed in universal terms - as something that could happen to any of us - the …
What Best To Protect Transsexuals From Discrimination: Using Current Legislation Or Adopting A New Judicial Framework, S. Elizabeth Malloy
What Best To Protect Transsexuals From Discrimination: Using Current Legislation Or Adopting A New Judicial Framework, S. Elizabeth Malloy
Faculty Articles and Other Publications
This article specifically examines the issues and controversies that transsexual individuals have encountered as a result of their lack of protection under anti-discrimination laws, particularly the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title VII. Part I is an overview of our society's binary sex/gender system and how this system serves to exclude and disenfranchise transsexuals. Part II examines the relationship between disability law and transsexuals, both explaining why they were excluded from the ADA and how state disability laws have provided more protection. Part III discusses how transsexuals have fared under a Title VII sex discrimination approach. This section also …