The Fifth Circuit Said What About Reasonable Accommodations? Re: Americans with Disabilities Act
R. Holtzman Hedrick
Barnes & Thornburg LLP
[url=http://www.natlawreview.com/article/fifth-circuit-said-what-about-reasonable-accommodations-re-americans-disabilities-ac] http://www.natlawreview.com/article/fifth-circuit-said-what-about-reasonable-accommodations-re-americans-disabilities-ac[/url]
In order to be covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an employee must be a “qualified individual with a disability.” [b]A “qualified individual,” in turn, must be able to perform the essential functions of his or her job with or without an accommodation. [/b]Based on these simple premises, most employers understand that they must provide reasonable accommodations to help their employees perform those essential functions (and, indeed, this is the type of accommodation that employees generally request). Accordingly, many employers would likely agree with the analysis of the Eastern District of Louisiana when it recently nixed a former assistant attorney general’s accommodation request for free on-site parking because the employee could not explain how the request assisted her in the performance of her essential functions.
Not so fast, ruled the Fifth Circuit in an opinion that can be found here (Feist v. Louisiana).
The Fifth Circuit Said What About Reasonable Accommodations? Re: Americans with Disabilities Act
![R. Holtzman Hedrick
Barnes & Thornburg LLP
[url=http://www.natlawreview.com/article/fifth-circuit-said-what-about-reasonable-accommodations-re-americans-disabilities-ac] http://www.natlawreview.com/article/fifth-circuit-said-what-about-reasonable-accommodations-re-americans-disabilities-ac[/url]
In order to be covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an employee must be a “qualified individual with a disability.” [b]A “qualified individual,” in turn, must be able to perform the essential functions of his or her job with or without an accommodation. [/b]Based on these simple premises, most employers understand that they must provide reasonable accommodations to help their employees perform those essential functions (and, indeed, this is the type of accommodation that employees generally request). Accordingly, many employers would likely agree with the analysis of the Eastern District of Louisiana when it recently nixed a former assistant attorney general’s accommodation request for free on-site parking because the employee could not explain how the request assisted her in the performance of her essential functions.
Not so fast, ruled the Fifth Circuit in an opinion that can be found here (Feist v. Louisiana).
The Fifth Circuit Said What About Reasonable Accommodations? Re: Americans with Disabilities Act](R. Holtzman Hedrick
Barnes & Thornburg LLP
[url=http://www.natlawreview.com/article/fifth-circuit-said-what-about-reasonable-accommodations-re-americans-disabilities-ac
and, indeed, this is the type of accommodation that employees generally request
Feist v. Louisiana
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The Fifth Circuit Said What About Reasonable Accommodations? Re: Americans with Disabilities ActR. Holtzman Hedrick Barnes & Thornburg LLP [url=http://www.natlawreview.com/article/fifth-circuit-said-what-about-reasonable-accommodations-re-americans-disabilities-ac] http://www.natlawreview.com/article/fifth-circuit-said-what-about-reasonable-accommodations-re-americans-disabilities-ac[/url] In order to be covered under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an employee must be a “qualified individual with a disability.” [b]A “qualified individual,” in turn, must be able to perform the essential functions of his or her job with or without an accommodation. [/b]Based on these simple premises, most employers understand that they must provide reasonable accommodations to help their employees perform those essential functions (and, indeed, this is the type of accommodation that employees generally request). Accordingly, many employers would likely agree with the analysis of the Eastern District of Louisiana when it recently nixed a former assistant attorney general’s accommodation request for free on-site parking because the employee could not explain how the request assisted her in the performance of her essential functions. Not so fast, ruled the Fifth Circuit in an opinion that can be found here (Feist v. Louisiana). The Fifth Circuit Said What About Reasonable Accommodations? Re: Americans with Disabilities Act