Americans With Disabilities Act Title I: Fundamentals for New Employment Attorneys
Covered Employers, Qualified Individuals With Disabilities, Interactive Process, Reasonable Accommodation, Undue Hardship
About the Course
Introduction
This CLE webinar will provide an overview of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title I for new employment attorneys. The panel will guide practitioners through ADA basics, including which employers are covered, when an employee is a qualified individual with a disability, when and how to engage in the interactive process, types of reasonable accommodation that may need to be provided, and when accommodation may be considered an undue hardship for employers. The panel will also discuss ADA enforcement and potential remedies and offer best practices for mitigating the risk of enforcement action.
Description
One of the most challenging federal laws with which employers must comply is the ADA, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability and requires employers to provide reasonable accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities unless doing so imposes an undue hardship on the employer. Whether an employee fits the definition of a "qualified individual with a disability" and whether an employer may be able to accommodate the employee is a fact-specific analysis. And the employer may have ongoing obligations even after initial accommodation is made depending on circumstances that may require a review of the accommodation's effectiveness or modification.
Common noncompliance issues include failing to recognize when an employee makes an informal accommodation request thus triggering the need for the interactive process; ignoring or not adequately engaging in the interactive process to explore possible reasonable accommodation; incorrectly determining essential job functions; and requiring excessive or improper medical documentation.
ADA noncompliance costs employers millions of dollars per year in litigation fees, damages, and penalties. Therefore, it is imperative that new employment attorneys understand employer obligations under the ADA to best guide their clients and mitigate the risk of costly enforcement action.
Listen as our authoritative panel guides new attorneys through the basics of the ADA including who qualifies as a covered employer, when an employee is a qualified individual with a disability, when and how to engage in the interactive process, types of reasonable accommodation that may need to be provided, and when accommodation may be considered an undue hardship for employers.
Presented By
Mr. Grisham has over 30 years of successful experience counseling and representing employers in all aspects of workplace law in Tennessee and across the U.S. He has helped employers avoid claims, charges, and lawsuits with a focus on preventative practices, including counseling on discipline, termination, demotion, promotion and other workplace changes, investigations, wage and hour compliance, reasonable accommodation assessment, supervisor training and the review of employment policies and procedures. Mr. Grisham has successfully litigated hundreds of administrative charges, employment lawsuits, and arbitration demands on behalf of employers, including federal and state law claims alleging discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, invasion of privacy, defamation, breach of contract, and wage and hour violations, among others. He represents employers in the prosecution and defense of trade secret claims, and in the enforcement of post-employment restrictive covenants such as non-compete, non-solicitation, and non-disclosure agreements. Mr. Grisham also represents employers in unfair labor practice and union representation election proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board. He is a Member of the American Employment Law Council, a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and of the American Bar Foundation. Mr. Grisham is a past Chair of the Memphis Bar Association's L&E Section and of the Tennessee Bar Association's L&E Section where he currently serves on the Executive Committee.
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
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Date + Time
- event
Wednesday, December 9, 2026
- schedule
1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
I. Introduction
A. Brief history of the ADA
B. Title I and employers
II. Covered employers
III. Employment practices
A. Prohibited activities
B. Medical examinations
IV. Qualified individuals with disabilities
A. Examples of disabilities
B. Determining essential job functions
C. Requests for medical documentation
V. Reasonable accommodation
A. Engaging in the interactive process
B. Examples of accommodation that may be considered reasonable
C. Documentation
D. Undue hardship defense
VI. Enforcement and potential remedies
VII. Key takeaways
The panel will review these and other important issues:
- What does the ADA require of employers when an employee seeks accommodation in their job for a health-related reason?
- How can employers determine whether to begin the interactive process with an employee who may need reasonable accommodation even if they have not gone through the formal request process?
- What types of accommodation have been considered "reasonable" under the law?
- What are common employer pitfalls related to the interactive process?
- When may reasonable accommodation be considered an undue hardship for employers?
Related Courses
Americans With Disabilities Act Title I: Fundamentals for New Employment Attorneys
Wednesday, December 9, 2026
1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
Combating Reptile Tactics in Employment Litigation
Available On-Demand
