Compliance Stuff

On June 20, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States held that a former firefighter forced to retire after developing Parkinson’s disease could not bring claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) over a change to her post-employment health insurance benefits . The ruling addressed a circuit split over whether disabled former employees can bring ADA claims to challenge employer decisions regarding post-employment benefits, narrowing ADA standing for retired employees. Quick Hits The Supreme Court ruled that a retired firefighter with Parkinson’s disease could not bring claims under the ADA regarding changes to her post-employment health benefits. The Court held that Title I of the ADA requires plaintiffs to have or desire a job for which they can perform the essential functions with or without reasonable accommodation at the time of an employer’s allegedly discriminatory actions. The decision clarifies a circuit split by concluding that to have standing under the ADA, p...

If you have a grooming policy based on safety factors (like no beards for firefighters), does that trump an employee’s request for a religious accommodation? Maybe not. A recent Third Circuit decision,  Smith v. City of Atlantic City, et al .,  addressed this issue and partially reversed a district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Atlantic City. The court revived a firefighter’s claims under the Free Exercise Clause and Title VII. The decision offers important guidance on how courts evaluate workplace grooming policies and employers’ obligations to accommodate religious beliefs. Burning Through the Facts Alexander Smith, a long-serving firefighter, served as the city’s only assigned air mask technician — a role that required him to maintain SCBA (self-contained breathing apparatus) units but not to enter hazardous environments. As a Christian, Smith requested that the city allow him to grow a beard as an accommodation to his sincerely held beliefs. The city’s gr...