Legal and Lawyers

The articles below discuss legal issues relating to disabilities including disability lawyers, estate planning, and services for the disabled.

Do you know what your legal rights are if you become disabled?

Disability rights for the disabled have greatly increased over the past few years when the disability discrimination act came into force. The aim of the act when introduced was to put an end to discrimination that was being faced by people with disabilities.

Today U.S. Disability law is largely regulated by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. This Act prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in employment, housing, education, and access to public services.

Various States may pass disability statutes so long as they are consistent with the ADA. Other statutes prohibiting discrimination against individuals with disabilities include the Fair Housing Act, Rehabilitation Act, Air Carrier Access Act, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

The Rehabilitation Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in programs conducted by Federal agencies, in programs recieving Federal financial assistance, in Federal employment, and in the employment practices of Federal contractors. Its standards mirror those of the ADA.

Further Information Regarding Legal and Lawyers

Civic Access for People With Disabilities - Fargo, North Dakota
Project Civic Access was initiated to ensure that individuals with disabilities have an equal opportunity to participate in civic life. As part of the project, department investigators, attorneys and architects survey state and local government facilities and programs throughout the country to identify modifications necessary to comply with ADA requirements.

Justice Department Sues Attorney for Disability Discrimination
The United States has filed a lawsuit against Patric LeHouillier, an attorney based in Colorado Springs, Colo., alleging that he violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by denying a woman with a service animal access to his offices...

Michigan Medicaid-Dependents Denied Access to Dental Healthcare - Suit Filed
Class action lawsuit seeks to rectify State's refusal to fund essential dental care for developmentally disabled and financially limited individuals. The State is in violation of requirements under federal Social Security Act's Medicaid provisions, jeopardizing the health of hundreds of thousands of vulnerable Michigan Medicaid beneficiaries.

Firefighters Charged with Fraud and Perjury
Two former Boston firefighters were charged in federal court with fraud involving their applications for accidental disability pensions, and a clerk in the Boston Fire Department was charged with perjuring herself and obstructing the grand jury investigation in this matter.

Disability Discrimination by Pepsi Bottling Group
The Pepsi Bottling Group, Inc. violated federal law by failing to accommodate and firing an employee with a disability, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a workplace discrimination lawsuit.

New Laws Protect Patients Genetic Information
Individuals genetic information will have greater protections through new regulations issued today by the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Labor, and the Treasury.

Accessibility of Donna's Restaurant in Baltimore
The Justice Department today announced a settlement agreement under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) to make Donna's, a cafe and restaurant located in the Mt. Vernon neighborhood of Baltimore accessible to people with disabilities.

Eeoc Sues Supervalu Jewel-Osco for Disability Rules and Discriminatory Leave
Jewel-Osco, an operating unit of national grocery giant Supervalu, Inc., has been violating federal anti-discrimination law by its leave and disability policies, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit it filed today.

Defining Disability under the ADA Amendments Act
The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) provides legal protections for workers with disabilities. However, since the passage of the law nearly 20 years ago, a series of court decisions has made it increasingly difficult for those with disabilities to qualify for the law's protections.

Largest Health Care Fraud Settlement in its History
American pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. and its subsidiary Pharmacia & Upjohn Company Inc. have agreed to pay $2.3 billion, the largest health care fraud settlement in the history of the Department of Justice, to resolve criminal and civil liability arising from the illegal promotion of certain pharmaceutical products, the Justice Department announced today.

Disability Housing Discrimination Based Against Idaho Condominium Developer
The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the developer of the Riverwalk Condominiums, a condominium apartment complex in Post Falls, Idaho, for violating the Fair Housing Act by constructing apartments that do not have required accessibility for individuals with disabilities.

Disability Discrimination Lawsuit Against Indiana Provider of Retirement Housing
Operator and manager of the Rathbone Retirement Community in Evansville, Ind., has agreed to pay up to $116,000 to resolve a housing discrimination lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that the defendants violated the Fair Housing Act by prohibiting the use of motorized wheelchairs and scooters in residents' apartments and in the home's common dining room during meals.

Company Sued for Disability Discrimination
A Detroit provider of charter school education and related education services violated federal law by firing an employee because of her breast cancer, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

Disability-Based Housing Discrimination Settlement
Individuals with disabilities have the basic right to expect reasonable accommodations that allow them access to housing. This settlement is a significant award for a case involving housing discrimination against a lone individual, and it should send a strong message to landlords that they must take all requests for reasonable accommodations very seriously.

Estate Planning Techniques for the Disabled
Article discusses essential estate planning techniques for families with disabled children. Families use two primary methods when planning their estate for their disabled children. The first is establishing a guardianship where a bank is the manager of the grantor's assets and a lawyer or another family member is the guardian. While this method seems practical to many families, it leads to unnecessary expenses that substantially burden the family.

Justice Department Settles Allegations of Disability Discrimination Against St. John, Indiana
The Justice Department today announced a settlement resolving allegations that the town of St. John, Ind., violated the Fair Housing Act when it denied a petition for a zoning variance based on the disability of a prospective resident.

Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Against the City of Dayton
The Department of Justice announced today that it has entered into a consent decree with the city of Dayton that, if approved by the court, will resolve the Department's complaint that Dayton has been engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination against African-Americans in its hiring of entry-level police officers and firefighters, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII).