OLRS and Client Receive National Award

The Ohio Legal Rights Service (OLRS) and one of its clients each received the Training and Advocacy Support Center's (TASC) Advocacy Award at TASC's Annual Conference in Baltimore, Maryland. The 2009 TASC Advocacy Award acknowledges OLRS' legal advocacy efforts in the Doe v Salvation Army employment discrimination case. OLRS PAIMI Advisory Council vice chairperson Anna Kvinta accepted the award on behalf of the client and OLRS commissioner Ted Sipes and OLRS legal director Kerstin Sjoberg-Witt accepted the award on behalf of the agency.

TASC annually recognizes state protection and advocacy systems for excellence in protecting and advocating for the rights of people with disabilities. Ohio and Wisconsin were the only state protection and advocacy agencies to receive TASC awards this year.

In Doe v Salvation Army, OLRS' client won an employment discrimination appeal when the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a decision of a district judge who had granted summary judgment dismissal of a complaint filed against the Salvation Army for its failure to hire a person because of his disability. The client, in response to a question during a job interview for a truck driving position, disclosed that he took psychotropic medications. The district court granted summary judgment, holding that he failed to establish the elements for a prima facie case.

OLRS, on behalf of the individual, appealed the decision and the appeals court held that the dismissal was inappropriate because there were genuine issues of material fact as to whether the client qualified as disabled under the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and whether the Salvation Army's failure to hire him was based solely on his purported disability.

TASC is a division of the National Disability Rights Network (NDRN), a nonprofit membership organization for the federally mandated Protection and Advocacy (P&A) Systems and Client Assistance Programs (CAP) for individuals with disabilities. Collectively, the P&A/CAP network is the largest provider of legally based advocacy services to people with disabilities in the United States.

Read more about Doe v Salvation Army

Article posted March 26, 2009