Legislators get to sue under disability laws

Trial Notebook

By Steven P. Garmisa

Hoey & Farina

Posted June 15, 2021 11:23 AM

Legislative immunity clashed with federal disability laws when seven New Hampshire legislators with medical conditions that make them particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 sued the Speaker of the House of Representatives for allegedly violating Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act by refusing to let them participate in legislative sessions remotely. Both statutes expressly override state immunity under the 11th Amendment, but a district judge denied the plaintiffs’ request …

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