Disability Law Commons^™

“Who Will Judge The Many When The Game Isthrough?”: Considering The Profound Differencesbetween Mental Health Courts And “Traditional”Involuntary Civil Commitment Courts, Michael L. Perlin

Seattle University Law Review

For forty years, we have known that involuntary civil commitment hearings are—in most jurisdictions—“charades.” When the Supreme Court noted, in Parham v. J.R., that the average length of a civil commitment hearing ranged from 3.8 to 9.2 minutes, the reaction of many who had done these cases was, “What? So long?!” The characterization of such hearings as being a “greased runway” to a state institution has never been disputed. Lawyers representing these individuals were bored or contemptuous; judges simply wanted to get cases moving; opposing counsel looked at their wrist watches to see when the ...

Module 1 - Beginning Models And History Of People With Disabilities.Pdf, John Kramer

John Kramer

Litigating Trauma As Disability In American Schools, Taylor N. Mullaney

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

No abstract provided.

When Courts Run Amuck: A Book Review Of Unequal: How America's Courts Undermine Discrimination Law By Sandra F. Sperino And Suja A. Thomas (Oxford 2017), Theresa M. Beiner

Texas A&M Law Review

In Unequal: How America’s Courts Undermine Discrimination Law (“Unequal”), law professors Sandra F. Sperino and Suja A. Thomas provide a point-by-point analysis of how the federal courts’ interpretations of federal anti-discrimination laws have undermined their efficacy to provide relief to workers whose employers have allegedly engaged in discrimination. The cases’ results are consistently pro-employer, even while the Supreme Court of the United States—a court not known for being particularly pro-plaintiff—has occasionally ruled in favor of plaintiff employees. The authors suggest some reasons for this apparent anti-plaintiff bias among the federal courts, although they do not settle on ...

Department Of Corrections V. Superior Court: Hear No Evil, Aaron T. Morel

Maine Law Review

On December 9, 1991, professional ethical and moral considerations prompted heated litigation in Department of Corrections v. Superior Court. Justice Donald G. Alexander of Maine's Superior Court displayed considerable foresight while sentencing two borderline mentally retarded child sex offenders. Although both defendants had committed repugnant crimes, Justice Alexander anticipated that they would be subjected to impermissible abuse if incarcerated in the Department of Corrections. He believed that preventive measures were necessary to ensure the safety of the defendants being sentenced and to avoid the potential that conditions of their incarceration would amount to cruel and unusual punishment. Justice Alexander ...

Disart: Redefining The Construct Of Participation, Jennifer Fortuna

The Open Journal of Occupational Therapy

DisArt, an arts and culture organization based in Grand Rapids, MI, provided the cover art for the Spring 2018 issue of the Open Journal of Occupational Therapy (OJOT). The piece, a somatic sculpture by Petra Kuppers, was featured at the 2015 DisArt Festival in Grand Rapids. Kuppers is a disability culture activist and community performance artist who connects people, both disabled and nondisabled, in public spaces. DisArt’s mission is to increase the participation of disabled people in our communities through disability art exhibitions, cutting edge public events, and consultation. In a recent interview, DisArt co-founders and executive directors, Dr ...

Developing The State Interagency Coordinating Council For Maine Child Developmental Services, Olivia Shaw

Poster Presentations

Each state is required by the federal Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), 20 U.S.C. 1441 to have a State Interagency Coordination Council to act as an advising council for their state Early Intervention Program. My leadership project mentor, Roy Fowler, the state director for Maine’s Early Intervention Program, Child Developmental Services (CDS), tasked me with helping him to develop a new and effective SICC for CDS. Doing this required extensive research into the federal requirements for an SICC including, participant requirements, responsibilities of the SICC, and the overall process for applying to be a member. Once the ...

Researching Less Restrictive Alternatives To Maine's Regulations Governing Behavior Supports For Adults With Developmental Disabilities, Holly Hegarty

Poster Presentations

This project was done in partnership with the NH-ME LEND Leadership Project and Disability Rights Maine. For this project I researched Maine’s regulations governing behavioral support, modification and management for adults with intellectual disabilities or autism spectrum disorder, and I researched regulations from other states. The purpose of my project was to compare regulations from other states with Maine’s regulations, with the goal to find a model state that Maine could potentially adopt parts of their regulations to make Maine’s regulations more progressive and less restrictive. This project was completed in collaboration between student, mentor and leadership ...

Writing The Access Code: Enforcing Commercial Web Accessibility Without Regulations Under Title Iii Of The Americans With Disabilities Act, Daniel Sorger

Boston College Law Review

A growing number of private lawsuits allege that businesses are violating Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act because their websites are inaccessible to disabled individuals. Courts remain divided, however, on the extent to which commercial websites are covered under Title III. Additionally, the Department of Justice has not promulgated commercial web accessibility regulations—adding further uncertainty to the private enforcement regime. This Note argues that Title III broadly covers commercial websites, but that private enforcement is not positioned to spur lasting, broad-based Title III compliance. It proposes that large-scale litigation, state attorney general action, and state laws should ...

The Remedial Authority Of Hearing And Review Officers Under The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act: The Latest Update, Perry A. Zirkel

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Paternalism And The Rise Of The Disability State, David W. Engel, Jeffrey S. Wolfe

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

No abstract provided.

Who Gets In? The Price Of Acceptance In Canada, Chavon A. Niles

Journal of Critical Thought and Praxis

The Canadian nation state is often applauded for its open and welcoming attitude towards Others. The Prime Minister of Canada has openly stated that “Diversity is our strength.” However, who gets in suggests who and what Canada values. Through the stories of Jazmine, Nico and Harold shared by Global News, I will illustrate how Canada continues to discriminate against people with disabilities. Using critical disability studies and critical race theory, I explore the assumptions the “excessive demand,” point system, and medical exam make in labelling and disregarding disabled applicants who are read as undesirable and unworthy. Finally, I reflect on ...

Process Improvement Ensures High-Quality Disability Benefit Evaluation, Jody Simpson

Commonwealth Medicine Publications

Ongoing quality management and review of disability benefit evaluation processes and procedures is critical for state and municipal retirement system administrators. Public retirement systems may be challenged in these areas due to limited time and resources.

Working with a partner who is skilled in assisting organizations with all aspects of their medical review needs can ease the burden. UMass Medical School’s Disability Evaluation Services offers comprehensive disability evaluation solutions with a focus on quality improvement and client satisfaction. Having the clinical expertise to provide medical board review recommendations and case management is just one of our strengths.

Mullin V. Ratheon Co.: The Threatened Vitality Of Disparate Impact Under The Adea, Miles F. Archer

Maine Law Review

Seven years after Congress enacted Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), and four years after the enactment of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (the ADEA), the Supreme Court, in Griggs v. Duke Power Co., enunciated the doctrine of disparate impact as a means of establishing liability under Title VII. Since that time, the doctrine has evolved considerably and its application and contours have been redefined by the Court as well as by Congress. Within this evolution there has been a debate among the courts and commentators as to whether the doctrine may ...

The Supreme Court Reverses The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Directive That Disability Determinations Should Be Made Without Regard To Mitigating Measures: Sutton V. United Airlines, Sara Gagne Holmes

Maine Law Review

In Sutton v. United Airlines, identical twin sisters with severe myopia, filed suit under Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) alleging that United Airlines (United) discriminated against them on the basis of a disability, or because United regarded them as having a disability. This case invited the United States Supreme Court to decide for the first time whether mitigating measures such as glasses, medication or prosthetics should be considered when determining if an impairment is an “actual disability” under the ADA, and what constitutes a proper allegation for being “regarded as” disabled under the ADA. In a ...

Mixed Messages: An Analysis Of The Conflicting Standards Used By The United States Circuit Courts Of Appeals When Awarding The Compensatory Education For A Violation Of The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act, James C. Schwellenbach

Maine Law Review

With the passage of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA) of 1975, now titled the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA or the Act), each child with a disability was guaranteed the right to a free and appropriate public education. It fell to the public schools to provide that free and appropriate education to students with disabilities, many of whom had been denied access to public schools prior to that time. It was inevitable that parents would disagree with their local school district, or the state educational agency, as to whether their child was being provided the kind ...

The Interplay Between Human Rights And Accessibility Laws: Lessons Learned And Considerations For The Planned Federal Accessibility Legislation, Laverne Jacobs

Law Publications

In this study, the author analyzes, comparatively, the administrative governance functions of legislation that provides accessibility standards in six jurisdictions that also offer legal protection from discrimination to people with disabilities: Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario, Manitoba and Nova Scotia. The following governance functions were examined: a) creating accessibility standards, b) enforcing accessibility standards, c) enforcing decisions,d) encouraging compliance, e) raising public awareness (and promoting systemic culture change) and f) public education. The study was conducted with a view to understanding how human rights laws, principles and values can be used ...

The Interplay Between Human Rights And Accessibility Laws: Lessons Learned And Considerations For The Planned Federal Accessibility Legislation, Laverne A. Jacobs

Laverne Jacobs

Collective Versus Individual Rights: The Able Worker And The Promotion Of Precarious Work For Persons With Disabilities Under Conflicting International Law Regimes, Paul Harpur

Loyola of Los Angeles International and Comparative Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Universality Of The Human Condition: Theorizing Transportation Inequality Claims By Persons With Disabilities In Canada, 1976-2016, Laverne A. Jacobs

Laverne Jacobs