Ruling by D.C. Circuit Sheds Light on Alcoholism as a Covered Disability Under the ADA

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled recently that an individual who claimed that his employer fired him for drinking on the job, but later refused to rehire him as promised after he completed an alcohol treatment program, was discriminated against in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

In reversing a federal trial court, the D.C. Circuit, ruling in Alexander v. WMATA, No. 15-7039 (D.C. Cir. June 24, 2016), found that the plaintiff had successfully made a case of “regarded as” discrimination under the ADA’s definition of disability, as expanded by the 2008 ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA).

A copy of the D.C. Circuit’s decision is available here.

Members of the Equal Employment Advisory Council (EEAC) can read more here.