Michigan
Journal of Law Reform
2000-2001 Symposium
The
Americans With Disabilities Act:
Directions For Reform
I.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The University of Michigan Journal of
Law Reform announces a symposium to explore the timely and controversial
issues concerning the interpretation and enforcement of the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA). This Symposium is designed to promote critical
discussion of the effectiveness and constitutionality of the ADA and the
legal challenges that individuals with disabilities continue to face in
their quest for full participation in education, employment, and other
aspects of our communities. The Symposium will evaluate the impact of
the ADA, propose ways in which its interpretation and implementation could
be changed or improved, and consider alternative means of addressing discrimination
against individuals with disabilities.
This year is the 10th anniversary of the passage
of the ADA, one of the most significant pieces of civil rights legislation
since the 1960s. The ADA seeks to provide clear and comprehensive standards
for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities.
It guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities in employment,
state and local government services, public accommodations, and telecommunications.
The ADA has been under attack, however, by those who think that the economic
costs of implementation, lack of national enforcement, and inconsistent
interpretations of the statute have hindered the realization of the ADA’s
directives and goals.
The ADA has also spurred a tremendous amount
of litigation. Although the statute was passed over a decade ago, the
U.S. Supreme Court remained silent with respect to the ADA until recently.
During the past few years, the Court has decided several key ADA cases.
The Court’s interest has renewed public attention to the issue of discrimination
against persons with disabilities and has led scholars, government officials,
judges, legal practitioners, and members of society to question the effectiveness
and viability of the ADA. Due to the continuing controversy surrounding
the interpretation and enforcement of the ADA, there is abundant room
for reform in this area of the law, making the subject ideally suited
to a Journal of Law Reform symposium.
II. PARTICIPANTS
Alison Barnes, Associate Professor
of Law
Marquette University Law School
Peter Blanck, Professor of
Law
The University of Iowa College of Law
Pamela Brandwein, Associate
Professor of Sociology and Government & Politics
University of Texas at Dallas
Ruth Brannon, Program Specialist
National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research, U.S. Department
of Education
Ruth Colker, Professor of Law
The Ohio State University College of Law
David Derodemi, Attorney
Dickinson Wright, Detroit, Michigan
Robert Dinerstein, Professor
of Law and Associate Dean
American University, Washington College of Law
Stanley Herr, Professor of
Law
University of Maryland School of Law
Andrew Imparato, President
American Association of People with Disabilities
Robin Jones, Project Director
Great Lakes ADA Center
Barbara Judy, Program Coordinator
Job Accommodation Network
Gillian Lester, Professor of
Law
University of California at Los Angeles School of Law
Lee Ann Marks, Senior Lecturer
La Trobe University School of Law and Legal Studies
Arlene B. Mayerson, Directing Attorney
Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, Inc.
David Moss, Assistant Professor
(Clinical)
Wayne State University Law School
Wendy Parmet, Professor of
Law
Northeastern University School of Law
Michael Perlin, Professor of
Law
New York Law School
Martin Pernick, Professor of
History
University of Michigan
Richard Scotch, Associate Professor
of Sociology and Political Economy
University of Texas at Dallas
Anita Silvers, Professor of
Philosophy
San Francisco State University
Michael Stein, Assistant Professor
of Law
The College of William & Mary School of Law
Andrew Weis, Attorney
Washington, D.C.
Judy Young, Director, Abilities,
Inc.
National Center for Disability Services
III. PANELS
Panel I: The Purpose and Efficacy
of the ADA
In 1990, the ADA was enacted to provide a clear and comprehensive national
mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with
disabilities. The ADA’s purpose was to provide strong, consistent, enforceable
standards addressing discrimination against individuals with disabilities.
While the ADA has fundamentally affected the way Americans perceive disability,
many contend that the ADA has failed to realize its goals. This panel
seeks to explore the intent behind the passage of the ADA and the impact
of the statute over the past decade.
Panel II: How Should We Define
Disability for Purposes of the ADA?
Some commentators argue that the difficulties surrounding the application
and enforcement of the ADA stem from the ways in which our society views
disability. This panel seeks to examine the current definition of disability
under the ADA, to explore the implications of earlier debates over the
meaning of disablity and to propose and analyze meanings and interpretations
of the term disability.
Panel III: Impact of the ADA
in Education
Recent scholarly debate has focused on the impact of the ADA in the field
of education, including such issues as whether individuals with learning
disabilities qualify as a rights protected group and how special education
resources should be allocated. This panel seeks to address the effects
of the ADA on the educational oppurtunities of Americans with disabilities.
Panel IV: Accommodating Mental
Health Disabilities
Title I of the ADA requires an employer to provide reasonable accommodations
to individuals with disabilities unless such accommodations would constitute
undue hardship on the operation of a business. Similarly, Title III prohibits
discrimination on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment
of goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations
of any place of public accommodation. This panel seeks to discuss the
adequacy of the ADA’s reasonable accommodation requirement for people
with mental disabilities.
Panel V: State Sovereignty
and the ADA
When Congress enacted the ADA, it exercised its power under Section Five
of the Fourteenth Amendment to enforce the Equal Protection Clause and
its power to regulate interstate commerce. Recently, there has been much
litigation concerning the constitutionality of Title II of the ADA, which
regulates state and local government activities. This panel seeks to explore
whether the statute is coextensive with the Fourteenth Amendment or whether
it remedies a specific, documented constitutional violation.
Panel VI: Roundtable: Directions
for Reform
Participants will react to the Symposium’s presentations and reform proposals
and will offer additional perspectives on the ADA and approaches to addressing
discrimination against individuals with disabilities.
IV. SPONSORS
University of Michigan Law School
University of Michigan School
of Literature, Science and the Arts
University of Michigan Office
of the Provost and Executive Vice President for Student Affairs
University of Michigan School
of Information
University of Michigan Services
for Students with Disabilities
University of Michigan School
of Education
University of Michigan School
of Architecture and Urban Planning
University of Michigan School
of Social Work
University of Michigan School
of Pharmacy
Lexis Publishing
Click
here for details of our 1999 Symposium.
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