On February 28, 2024, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) released an advance copy of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) titled “Ensuring Safe Accommodations for Air Travelers with Disabilities Using Wheelchairs.”...more
Imagine you are in charge of a facility that is open to the public—perhaps a church, a restaurant, a hardware store, or an apartment building. A woman enters with a dog on a leash. She says the dog is a service dog or...more
What is the difference between a service animal and an emotional support animal? A service animal is a dog which has been trained to perform a specific task or to do work directly related to a person’s disability. Service...more
Executive Summary: Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits disability discrimination in places of public accommodation, which includes businesses (including transit) that are open to the public – like...more
The Ninth Circuit’s recent holding that “the ADA prohibits certification requirements for qualifying service dogs” is a timely reminder for all persons using service animals that certification of a service animal’s...more
The final rule on Traveling by Air with Service Animals in the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), codified in 14 CFR Part 382 and published in December, took effect January 11, 2021....more
Those dreaming of taking to the skies next year with scaled, feathered, or furry friends may want to take a look at the recent DOT Service Animal Final Rule before making travel plans. In an employment setting, there is no...more
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has issued a new regulation, “Traveling by Air with Service Animals,” that substantially revises its rules governing the transportation of service animals onboard aircraft. Under...more
Acclaimed actor Samuel L. Jackson put it best when he exclaimed in a 2006 film: “Enough is enough. I have had it with these [expletive] snakes on this [same expletive] plane.” With its final rule under the Air Carrier...more
On January 22, 2020, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) proposed new amendments to the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) regulations. These amendments would further restrict the type and use of service animals on...more
On Wednesday, August 21, 2019, the U.S. Department of Transportation published a “Final statement of enforcement priorities regarding service animals.” 84 FR 43480-01, 2019 WL 3934886 (F.R.). Unfortunately, as several...more
Given the menagerie of terms, it is easy to see why some business owners are quite confused about what to do when they are asked to permit an animal in their places of business. Part of the confusion comes from the multitude...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Department of Transportation says that an airline’s provision of an accessible alternative website violates the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), so are such websites an acceptable means of providing...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Is it a service animal or an emotional support animal? Do I have to allow both? How to tell one from the other, and the rules that apply....more
We all love and indulge our pets. My cats have “contributed” to my articles by walking across my keyboard as I work. I was less thrilled with the cats when one left a dead mouse as a present on my stairs. For some people,...more