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Applying The Ada To Mitigating Measures Cases: A Choice Of Statutory Evils, Lisa A. Eichhorn
Applying The Ada To Mitigating Measures Cases: A Choice Of Statutory Evils, Lisa A. Eichhorn
Faculty Publications
This Article critiques the idea that the ADA should exclude from its coverage people who use mitigating measures, such as medications and medical devices, to alleviate the effects of their mental and physical impairments. After describing the statute as an expansive but flawed tool for combating disability-based discrimination, the Article analyzes a 1999 trilogy of Supreme Court cases holding that in determining whether a person has a disability for purposes of ADA coverage, courts should take account of the ameliorative effects of so-called mitigating measures on the person’s impairments. Through this holding, the Court inappropriately constricted the scope of the …
Major Litigation Activities Regarding Major Life Activities: The Failure Of The Disability Definition In The Americans With Disabilities Act Of 1990, Lisa A. Eichhorn
Major Litigation Activities Regarding Major Life Activities: The Failure Of The Disability Definition In The Americans With Disabilities Act Of 1990, Lisa A. Eichhorn
Faculty Publications
The passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA") in 1990 has been praised as the major accomplishment of the disability rights movement. This statute, however, is not without its flaws. Perhaps the most problematic one is the way in which “disability” is defined. Lisa Eichhorn argues that the definition undercuts the effectiveness of the ADA. She begins with a historical look at society’s concepts of disability and discusses how these concepts were incorporated into the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the ADA. She then examines cases that have been dismissed because plaintiffs cannot prove disabled status, which illustrate the …