Burton Blatt Institute Chairman and University Professor Peter Blanck’s 2nd edition of “Disability Law and Policy” was released in honor of the 34th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). “Disability Law and Policy provides an overview of the themes and insights in disability law. It is a compelling compendium of stories about how our legal system has responded to the needs of impacted individuals.
The year 2025 marks the 35th anniversary of the ADA, celebrated on July 26. During the past three decades, disability law and policy have evolved dramatically in the United States and internationally. “Walls of inaccessibility, exclusion, segregation, and discrimination have been torn down, often brick by brick. But the work continues, many times led by advocates who have never known a world without the ADA and are now building on the efforts of those who came before them,” says Blanck, a professor at the College of Law.
Lex Frieden, an internationally distinguished disability rights scholar and advocate and former Chairperson of the U.S. National Council on Disability, writes in the Foreword to Blanck’s book: “In 1967, I survived a head-on car crash. When I woke up, I was paralyzed from the shoulders down. . . . My story is one of many in the modern disability rights movement. In ‘Disability Law and Policy,’ Peter Blanck retells my story, and the personal experiences of many others living with disabilities, in a master tour of the area. Peter is a world-renowned teacher, researcher, lawyer, and advocate. He has been central to the modern sea change in disability civil rights . . . ‘Disability Law and Policy’ should be read by all of us—people with the lived experience of disability and their advocates, parents, family members, and friends.”
Blanck says that “a new generation of people with disabilities, building on the efforts of Lex Frieden and many others, families, friends, advocates, and supporters, is stepping forward. As a guiding beacon, disability law and policy offer hope of a future in which all people, regardless of individual difference, will be welcomed as full and equal members of society.”
“Disability Law and Policy” is published by Foundation Press and is available from West Academic.
Disability Law
Yohannes Takele Zewale LL.M.’19, S.J.D.’24 Successfully Defends Dissertation for Doctor of Juridical Science Degree
Yohannes Takele Zewale, LL.M.’19, S.J.D.’24, successfully defended his dissertation for the Doctor of Juridical Science (S.J.D.) degree. Zewale passed the oral defense of his dissertation with no revisions, becoming the first student to receive his S.J.D. from the College of Law.
In his dissertation, titled “Representation and Persons with Disabilities in Legislatures: A Proposed Model of Approval Representation,” Zewale discusses the lack of descriptive representation of disabled people in legislatures, as well as the limited research on the topic. To address this shortcoming, Zewale proposes a new model of “Approval Representation”, which seeks to increase descriptive representation based solely on voter preferences. His model is an alternative to the model of Descriptive Representation, which has been used in many countries to promote the representation of women and racial, ethnic, and religious minorities. Only five countries’ laws include quotas requiring the descriptive representation of disabled people in their legislatures, and all these countries are in the African region.
“Not only is Yohannes’ dissertation significant for its comprehensiveness (at 270 pages), its originality (there is only one other article on the topic), and its use of qualitative research methods to support its claims (following receipt of Institutional Review Board approval, he conducted interviews with 12 disabled people who serve in legislatures), but this dissertation is also significant because it shines a light on countries that are too often ignored by a research field largely dominated by Western scholars. The fact that the first five countries that have instituted policies to ensure representation of disabled people in their legislatures are all within the African region is a topic worthy of research in itself,” says Professor Arlene Kanter, Faculty Director of International Programs and dissertation advisor to Zewale.
Zewale has published one of the chapters from his dissertation in the Harvard Online International Law Journal and a separate chapter in the African Disability Rights Yearbook.
Zewale earned his LL.B. and his first LL.M. from Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia, in 2015 and 2018, respectively. He received his LL.M., as an Open Society Fellow, with a concentration on international and comparative disability law, from the College of Law in 2019. He has held positions at the Addis Ababa University School of Law, the Ethiopian Center for Disabilities and Development (ECDD), and different organizations. He is currently working for various non-governmental organizations at both national and international levels.
Professor Kat Macfarlane Responds to Competing Judge Shopping Bills
Professor Kat Macfarlane, an expert on local Federal court rules, recently spoke with Law360 for the article “Dueling Bills Highlight Partisan Divide Over ‘Judge Shopping’.” At issue are competing Senate bills from both parties that aim to limit ‘judge shopping.’
Macfarlane says what’s missing from the bills are any attempts to limit unfair judge assignments in criminal or non-political cases. Regarding Senator Chuck Schumer’s, D-N.Y., bill, she fears that “unrepresented, incarcerated, powerless parties” are not part of the considerations.
“There are so many examples of other cases in which parties get their cases assigned directly, there are all kinds of local rules that allow judges to pull what they call related cases onto their docket, senior judges and visiting judges get to select the type and number of cases they hear,” Macfarlane said. Another example is that, in certain district courts, when someone wants to challenge their federal conviction through a habeas petition, “there are rules that force the filing of our federal habeas petition to be directly assigned to the same judge that sentenced you.”
Professor Kat Macfarlane on Federal Texas Trial Courthouse Maneuvering: “It’s absurd to give that much power to one person in the federal system”
Professor Kat Macfarlane recently spoke with Bloomberg Law for the article “Chief Judge Sought to Move New Appointee Out of Texas Courthouse.” The article revolved around Chief Judge Alia Moses of a Texas federal trial court’s attempt to reassign a newly appointed judge Ernest Gonzales out of her courthouse to another courthouse over a reported personal issue. The chief judge said the move was due to a conflict of interest, but that conflict has been resolved.
Macfarlane, who studies case assignment procedures, said it’s concerning that such a decision can be made by the chief judge individually with little oversight. Chief judges are not chosen or elected but rather are elevated to the position if they meet certain criteria set by federal law, including being under the age of 65. Still, many courts make decisions on matters like case assignment through consensus, rather than divisive votes.
“It’s absurd to give that much power to one person in the federal system,” Macfarlane said.
Professor Arlene Kanter publishes “The Role of Human Rights Indicators in Assessing Compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities” in the Georgia Law Review
Professor Arlene Kanter, Founding Director of the Disability Law and Policy Program, has recently had her article, The Role of Human Rights Indicators in Assessing Compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities” published in the Georgia Law Review.
The article’s abstract:
In recent years, international human rights treaties have come under attack for failing to fulfill their promise. While it may be true that human rights treaties have not realized their full potential in every case, there is little discussion about how to measure the impact of treaties. This Article explores the ways in which we measure compliance with human rights treaties, focusing on the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (CRPD). The CRPD entered into force in 2008. Since then, 188 States Parties have ratified it. In addition, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights recently released a set of indicators designed to measure States Parties’ progress towards implementation of the CRPD. These new “CRPD Indicators” are designed to assist States Parties as well as the CRPD Committee and other UN bodies in assessing compliance with the CRPD. This Article is the first to analyze the benefits as well as the limitations of the new CRPD Indicators.
This Article begins with an analysis of the CRPD, followed by an analysis of the ways in which the CRPD differs from other human rights treaties, including its reporting and monitoring requirements. The Article then discusses recent research on the role of human rights indicators as a tool to measure treaty compliance, followed by a discussion of the benefits and limitations of the new CRPD Indicators, as examined from a Disability Studies perspective. Assessing the role of the CRPD Indicators from a Disability Studies perspective requires a reframing of the essential role of people with disabilities and their organizations in working towards compliance and implementation of the CRPD. The Article concludes with a cautionary note regarding reliance on the CRPD Indicators as the primary tool to assess compliance with the CRPD. Although the CRPD Indicators are a helpful tool in measuring States’ progress towards compliance, they cannot replace ongoing efforts to mobilize and support disabled people in their fight for full implementation of the CRPD.
The article can be found here.
The citation is 58 Georgia Law Review 663 (2024).
Professor Arlene Kanter on the Dunkin’ Donut Discrimination Lawsuit
Professor Arlene Kanter, the Founding Director of the Disability Law and Policy Program, recently spoke with NBC News Now about a lawsuit against Dunkin’ Donuts that claims the company discriminates against customers with milk allergies by charging them more for non-dairy alternatives. The lawsuit seeks remedy under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
“People who have chronic conditions, such as lactose intolerance or food allergies, if they are substantially limiting the ability to eat or function day to day, they are considered disabilities under the act,” says Kanter.
She adds, “They offer sweeteners that are not sugar and decaffeinated coffee. To single out a non-dairy alternative is discriminatory.”
Professor Arlene Kanter Discusses Whether Charging More for Non-Dairy Milk to Lactose-Intolerant Customers Violates the Americans with Disabilities Act
Reacting to a class action lawsuit brought against Dunkin Donuts where the store charges more for non-dairy milk, Professor Arlene Kanter sees this as a strong case for discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). She is quoted in the NBC News article “Is that extra charge for nondairy milk discrimination? A lawsuit challenges Dunkin’ Donuts’ fees.”
“If a person qualifies as a person with a disability, and they’re entitled to an accommodation or modification — which in this case looks pretty simple as nondairy milk — they cannot be charged extra,” says Kanter, adding that allergies and intolerances can be a disability if they substantially limit a major life activity.
Professor Kat Macfarlane’s Paper, Disability Without Documentation, Cited in Psychology Today Article
The Psychology Today article “How Suspicion Feeds Stigma Against Neurodivergent People” cites Professor Kat Macfarlane’s Fordham Law Review paper “Disability Without Documentation.”
Macfarlane, the director of the Disability Law and Policy Program, notes in her paper that the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) never intended to require medical documentation to gain accommodations.
Professor Kat Macfarlane Comments on Accessibility Issues Raised at AMC Theater in Greenville, North Carolina
In the wake of a disagreement between a disabled patron and management of an AMC Theater in Greenville, NC over seating accommodations, Professor Kat Macfarlane provided accessibility and Americans with Disabilities Act perspectives to ABC News 11.
Macfarlane, the Director of the Disability Law and Policy Program, noted that “The Americans with Disabilities Act governs places like movie theaters and restaurants, and requires that if there’s a policy in place, a movie theater for example, has to make a reasonable modification for people with disabilities.”
“It’s a Disappointing Outcome”: Professor Kat Macfarlane on the Jury Decision in the Vivian Cheung Discrimination Case
Professor Kat Macfarlane, director of the Disability Law and Policy Program, spoke again with Science after the Maryland jury unanimously voted against disabled researcher Vivian Cheung’s discrimination case against Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
“It’s a disappointing outcome but I’m grateful to Viv for taking on this fight,” says Macfarlane. “Every time disability discrimination is challenged in this manner it helps the next person find the courage to speak up, too.”