Episode 07: "Next Gen" Reasonable Accommodations And Disability Law Trends
Co-op and condo boards have a legal obligation to provide reasonable accommodations to residents with disabilities. Residents often request permission to live with their so-called emotional support or therapy animals (“ESAs”)...more
Owners Survey, about 70% of U.S. households own pets, up from 67% in the 2019-20 survey. As pet ownership increases, apartment dwellers may face the challenges of finding pet-friendly housing. Apartment leases often come...more
In attempting to assess the complicated balance between an individual employee’s need for a service animal and the requirements of clients, customers, patients, and the workplace as a whole, the Eighth Circuit has weighed in...more
We were all deeply moved by the images of President George H.W. Bush’s service dog, Sully, lying near the late president’s casket. Service animals provide an invaluable resource for hundreds of thousands of Americans living...more
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has issued several significant decisions that employers doing business in Minnesota should be aware of. Here are a few highlights of recent Eight Circuit Decisions that have addressed...more
The Equal Opportunities Commission recently issued Guide Dogs: A Practical Guide with a view to better protect the rights of guide dog users in public settings....more
Requests by a resident to have an emotional support animal that would violate a housing unit’s occupancy agreement must be analyzed under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, the New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled. As...more
Pennsylvania law, as currently written, does not have any special provisions for pets when their owners get divorced. Even though many individuals consider pets as children, Pennsylvania courts do not. ...more
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed a bill significantly amending the Minnesota Human Rights Act (MHRA) on May 15, 2024. The MHRA, otherwise known as Minnesota’s anti-discrimination statute, already prohibited discrimination...more
A Puerto Rico federal court holding reminds us that an animal that performs work or tasks for a person with a psychiatric disability – such as identifying the onset of a panic attack and taking action to mitigate its effect –...more
Tennessee restaurant owners have likely experienced patrons bringing emotional support animals (ESAs) into their restaurants. Those owners have also likely wondered what restrictions exist under current law on allowing ESAs...more
The concept of service animals in the workplace has been around for quite some time, but many managers, especially those at smaller companies, may not have yet had to address it. With regard to employees, you can treat a...more
Recently, we discussed whether a miniature horse qualified as a service animal allowed to enter public accommodations under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The answer is yes, but what does that mean for...more
A right to an emotional support animal has been a heavily discussed topic for years, especially for certain extreme requests involving the use of an exotic animal for emotional support purposes, or when there is a claim that...more
We have received an increasing number of questions about service animals — and most recently — an inquiry about miniature horses. While the statutory definition of "service animal" under Title III of the Americans with...more
...What are employer obligations when an employee asks to bring a service animal into the workplace? This is a question faced more and more by employers, and the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals recently offered guidance,...more
Emotional support animals (ESAs) are pets prescribed by a licensed mental health professional for those with disabling mental illness. While emotional support animals are commonly cats and dogs, any animal can serve in this...more
With the surge of return to work policies cropping up through out the US, we have received an uptick of landlord inquiries about pets and animals in leased spaces. While it is a landlord's prerogative to prohibit pets in...more
Considering the termination of a high school teacher who underwent hip surgery and the refusal of a hospital to allow a nursing student’s service dog, the U.S. Court of Appeals, First and Sixth Circuits, both affirmed...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals approved state-owned hospital’s exclusion of nursing student’s service animal that posed a direct threat to patients and staff with severe allergies where no reasonable...more
We regularly receive questions from employers about their obligation to permit employees to bring their dogs or other service animals to work as a form of accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Employers are...more
Occasionally we see a story in the news that we can’t resist blogging about, and this one is no exception: Last week, an emotional support alligator named “Wally” was denied access to Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia to...more
The Virginia Residential Landlord Tenant Act governs the relationship between landlords and tenants in Virginia, whether large or small, formal or informal, between a tenant and a large apartment complex, or between two...more
In the employment context, employers are required to consider whether an employee’s Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) request to bring a service animal or an emotional support animal (ESA) to work qualifies as a...more
The Federal Fair Housing Act (FHA), as well as the substantially similar Florida Fair Housing Act (FFHA), prohibits discrimination in housing based on a person’s disability. As “housing providers,” homeowners associations and...more