Sotomayor Nomination is Good News, Say Advocates for People with Mental Disabilities

Washington DC, May 26, 2009—The Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law today applauded the President’s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the U.S. Supreme Court. “Her opinions demonstrate that Judge Sotomayor understands the language and the purpose of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other disability rights laws,” said Robert Bernstein, the Center’s executive director.

“Her empathy is evident, as is her understanding that judges’ decisions interpreting these federal laws have real-life consequences for people with disabilities and their opportunity to participate in American life,” Bernstein added.

 A preliminary review of her cases by Bazelon Center senior staff attorney Lewis Bossing suggests that she would bring that understanding to the Supreme Court. “I am struck by how she has often engaged in searching inquiries into the nature of plaintiffs’ impairments,” Bossing said, “apparently motivated by a genuine desire to accurately determine whether a plaintiff is protected by law.”

Bossing reviewed decisions by Judge Sotomayor involving the ADA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the Rehabilitation Act, federal privacy law and Social Security disability rulings. These laws cover the relationships between individuals with disabilities and entities such as employers, schools, state agencies and public facilities.

In ADA cases concerning the definition of “disability,” Judge Sotomayor has apparently combed through voluminous or technical testimony to determine whether evidence existed that the plaintiff was substantially limited in a major life activity or that the employer regarded the plaintiff as so limited. She has also given careful consideration whether accommodations offered are reasonable—for example, reversing a verdict against the plaintiff for failure to instruct the jury that, in determining whether reassignment to a vacant position is a reasonable accommodation, an offer of an inferior position is not reasonable when a comparable (lateral) position is available, Norville v. Staten Island University Hospital, 196 F. 3d 89 (2d Cir. 1999).

A review and analysis of selected district court and Second Circuit decisions by Judge Sotomayor is available at www.bazelon.org/issues/disabilityrights/sotomayor5-09.pdf

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The Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, www.bazelon.org, is the leading national legal-advocacy organization representing people with mental disabilities. It promotes laws and policies that can enable people with psychiatric or developmental disabilities to exercise their life choices and access the resources they need to participate fully in their communities.