Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani Partners H. Barret Marshall, Jr., Haley M. Heath, and Salina Tariq secured an appellate victory in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on behalf of the firm’s client, an environmental maintenance and remediation company, in an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) discrimination and retaliation lawsuit.
The plaintiff, formerly employed by the client as a CDL driver, filed the underlying lawsuit alleging that the company discriminated and retaliated against him by requiring him to take a fit-for-duty test after he refused to clean underground hazardous materials because of previously undisclosed heart problems.
At the trial court level, the judge granted summary judgment in favor of GRSM’s client based on evidence demonstrating that the plaintiff and his doctor admitted his heart condition did not affect his ability to perform his job duties or daily life activities. The court also found that directing the plaintiff to obtain DOT medical clearance before returning to work was neither discriminatory nor retaliatory, but instead was based on legitimate safety concerns.
On appeal, the Eighth Circuit issued a unanimous decision affirming the trial court’s findings that the plaintiff failed to prove he was disabled under the ADA and that GRSM’s client did not retaliate against the plaintiff for engaging in a protected activity.
At GRSM, our Employment practice delivers comprehensive counseling and litigation services to a diverse array of clients, ranging from Fortune 500 corporations to nonprofits, and brings extensive experience in handling cases alleging violations of the ADA.