National Council on Disability Files Supreme Court Brief in ADA Case: Experts Available for Comment

2/6/2002

From: Mark S. Quigley of the National Council on Disability, 202-272-2004 or 202-272-2074 (TTY)

WASHINGTON, Feb. 6 -- The National Council on Disability (NCD) filed an amicus brief on Feb. 1 with the U.S. Supreme Court in Chevron U.S.A. v. Echazabal (No. 00-1406) (http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/chevron_amicus.html), a case involving to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Echazabal is a major case in the Supreme Court's recent line of ADA cases examining the employment rights of people with disabilities. The Court will decide whether an employer may reject a job applicant with a disability who is qualified to do the job and not a safety risk to others in the workplace, but whose health condition may be speculatively worsened by the workplace environment. Oral argument is set for Feb. 27, with a decision by the Court expected this spring.

NCD's team of experts will be available for comment following oral argument in Echazabal. They are:

-- Marca Bristo, NCD chairperson. Bristo is the president and chief executive officer of Access Living of Metropolitan Chicago. She also co-founded and served a two-term presidency with the National Council on Independent Living. She can be reached at 312-253-7000.

-- Jeffrey T. Rosen, NCD general counsel and director of policy. Rosen is a former U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission attorney, where he worked as a senior attorney in the Office of Legal Counsel, Advice and External Litigation Division. He can be reached at 202-272-2124.

-- Kathleen A. Blank, NCD senior attorney advisor. Blank is a disability civil rights attorney who previously conducted and coordinated research on federal enforcement of disability civil rights laws at the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund. She can be reached at 202-272-2019.

-- Peter Blanck, Counsel of Record. Blanck is professor and director of the University of Iowa College of Law, and Law, Health Policy and Disability Center. He can be reached at 319-335-9043.

For more information, contact Mark S. Quigley at 202-272-2004.

------ Note: NCD is an independent federal agency making recommendations to the President and Congress on disability policy. In 1986, NCD first proposed and then drafted the original ADA. Currently, NCD is coordinating a multi-year study on the implementation and enforcement of ADA and other civil rights laws.