Developmental
August 29, 2019
On August 29, 2019, Disability Rights Advocates and Legal Council for Health Justice filed a class action lawsuit against Chicago Public Schools (“CPS”) challenging CPS’s policy of denying free nutrition programs to students whose disabilities require them to attend therapeutic day schools (“TDS”). On June 3, 2021, Judge Young B. Kim preliminarily approved a settlement … Continue reading » “Jackson v. The Board of Education of the City of Chicago”
August 19, 2019
Click here for community resources (English and Spanish) including information explaining the consequences of the court’s order, who it applies to, and aspects of the decision that may be useful in your advocacy. According to the April 20, 2020 emergency order, ICE must conduct custody redeterminations for all subclass members. Click here for information on … Continue reading » “Fraihat v. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement”
July 31, 2019
Disponible en español abajo. On June 9, 2017, Disability Rights Advocates, The Learning Rights Law Center, and the Law Office of Shawna L. Parks filed a lawsuit in the Central District of California on behalf of the organization Primero Los Niños and 10 individual children with disabilities, charging that the Oxnard School District does not … Continue reading » “J.R. v. Oxnard School District”
July 27, 2017
On June 22, 2021, a United States District Court approved a settlement with the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) to resolve a 2017 lawsuit brought by Bronx Independent Living Services (BILS) and two students with disabilities in the Bronx, represented by Disability Rights Advocates (DRA). The class action lawsuit challenged the DOE’s denial … Continue reading » “M.G., et al. v. New York City Department of Education, et al.”
July 27, 2016
On September 9, 2014, DRA filed a class action lawsuit together with co-counsel from Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP and the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs against the District of Columbia for its failure to meaningfully include persons with disabilities in its emergency planning. People with disabilities have traditionally faced exceptionally … Continue reading » “D.C. Center for Independent Living, et al. v. District of Columbia”
March 24, 2015
Disabled employees of the Social Security Administration (SSA) challenged SSA’s discriminatory practice of limited job promotions and other career advancement opportunities for people with disabilities. On August 25, 2010, the EEOC Office of Federal Operations affirmed the October 8, 2008 decision of the Administrative Judge to certify the case as a class action. SSA filed … Continue reading » “Jantz, et al. v. Barnhart”
September 6, 2012
The City and County of Los Angeles have experienced multiple natural disasters ranging from earthquakes, fires, and landslides; the County of L.A. has declared a state of emergency over twenty-four times since 1980. L.A.’s vulnerability to disasters highlighted the critical need to ensure that the City and County of L.A. include the safety of people … Continue reading » “Communities Actively Living Independent and Free (CALIF), et al. v. City of Los Angeles”
May 11, 2012
This federal class action lawsuit was filed in September of 2011. More than a decade after 9/11, New Yorkers with disabilities continued to face disproportionate risks of catastrophic harm and death during disasters – as Hurricanes Irene had shown, and as Sandy soon demonstrated. The class of 900,000 New York residents with disabilities included people with vision, … Continue reading » “Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled (BCID), et al. v. Mayor Bloomberg, et al.”
May 11, 2012
On January 21, 2010, in a settlement announced by DRA and the City of Oakland, Oakland agreed to adopt an emergency plan which includes the needs of people with all types of disabilities during emergency disasters. Oakland is particularly vulnerable to emergency disasters. Since 1983, it has experienced eight Presidential-declared disasters, including the 1989 Loma … Continue reading » “California Foundation for Independent Living Centers (CFILC), et al. v. City of Oakland, et al.”