Law Commons^™

Scaling Back The Ada: How The Sutton V. United Airlines Decision Affects Employees With Bipolar Disorder., Kevin Wiley Jr.

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

The Sutton v. United Airlines decision went too far in the Supreme Court’s effort to scale back the protections of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  Congress should review the Sutton decision and amend the ADA to consider disabilities as they exist without regard to mitigating measures based on the severity of the illness. To seek protection under the ADA, one must have a discernable disability, and one’s impairment must be diagnosed and disclosed to the employer. Disability, however, was not specifically defined in the ADA, and no agency or regulation has specifically defined disability for the courts to utilize …