Madia Law Represents Employees Who Are Victims of Disability Discrimination

The Americans with Disabilities Act,  the Minnesota Human Rights Act, and Wisconsin law prohibit discrimination by employers based on disability. If you have work restrictions based on a permanent injury or disability, your employer must make a reasonable effort to accommodate those restrictions to help you perform your job. Reasonable accommodations can include different equipment, new ways of doing the job, job restructuring, or even reassignment. Employers are not allowed to terminate you just because you have work restrictions – they must work with you in an interactive process to try to find a way that you can do your job. If employers fail to do this and instead just terminate you, they may be guilty of disability discrimination.

Representative Cases

Disability discrimination and breach of fiduciary duty case results in $1.3 million jury verdict. 

Dr. Deweese worked as a family practice physician for nearly twenty years at his clinic and earned high praise from his patients.  He devoted his entire working life to the institution, committed himself to a high standard of excellence in his profession, and committed a large capital contribution in order to secure his partnership.  Dr. Deweese alleged that his clinic’s relationship with him changed after he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in summer 2007.

Dr. Deweese alleged that his clinic’s leadership pressured, manipulated, and deceived him into relinquishing his shareholder status after his diagnosis.  Minnesota law imposes a fiduciary duty on fellow shareholders in closely held corporations – each shareholder must act with loyalty and care toward their fellow shareholders.

Dr. Deweese further alleged that his clinic refused to increase his hours as it had previously promised in exchange for his shareholder status.  In Minnesota, people are not allowed to make false promises that they have no intention of fulfilling in order to get others to enter into agreements – that’s called fraudulent inducement.

Dr. Deweese alleged that shortly after he complained to the Minnesota Department of Human Rights of disability discrimination, his clinic removed him from his position and ordered a fitness for duty evaluation.  He was terminated shortly thereafter.  He therefore alleged disability discrimination and retaliation under the Minnesota Human Rights Act.

We took this to trial and won a $1.3 million verdict in Carver County. Read more here.

Failure to accommodate results in $400,000 settlement. 

“Jill” (name changed for confidentiality) worked at a large corporation for nearly twenty years as a maintenance worker and excelled. However, she injured her back on the job and needed medical attention. Ultimately, her doctor gave her work restrictions stating that she could not lift, push, or pull more than 40 pounds. She continued working at her position, with her restrictions, and continued to excel. One morning, her employer called her into a meeting and told her that she was terminated because her medical restrictions prevented her from performing the essential functions of her position. Jill was devastated – she loved her job and it was her only source of income. Jill’s employer failed to make any effort to find reasonable accommodations for her disability.

We believed that her employer had violated the Americans with Disabilities Act and discriminated against Jill based on her disability, given that she was perfectly capable of doing her job, even with restrictions. Jill ended up retaining us and we brought suit against her employer for violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Minnesota Human Rights Act. After a year and a half of litigation, the case settled for nearly a half-million dollars. Jill moved on with her life and now enjoys a degree of financial security which she never could have imagined.

Please note that every case is different, with its own unique facts. You should contact Madia Law to discuss your disability discrimination case in detail and get an accurate assessment of its value.

You May Be Entitled to Lost Wages, Getting Your Old Job Back, Punitive Damages, and Attorney Fees

If you have been the victim of disability discrimination, you may be entitled to back pay and front pay damages, reinstatement to your job, emotional distress compensation, treble damages under the Minnesota Human Rights Act, punitive damages under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and your attorney fees and costs.

Contact Our Minnesota and Wisconsin Disability Discrimination Lawyers Today

You must act quickly when it comes to filing a claim for disability discrimination. There are tough statutes of limitation that will bar you from filing your claim if you wait too long. Call Madia Law today to discuss your case. All consultations are free.