Opinion ID: 1948306
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Bar Examinations Americans with Disabilities Act

Text: The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42 U.S.C.A. §§ 12101-12213 (West Supp.1993), became effective on January 26, 1992. The United States Department of Justice promulgated regulations to implement the ADA's statutory mandate. 28 C.F.R. pts. 35-36 (1991). The Department of Justice also prepared a section-by-section analysis of its regulations. Id. In 1991, prior to the ADA becoming effective, the United States Department of Justice and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission published the Americans with Disabilities Act Handbook. The ADA has been described as a national mandate to provide reasonable accommodations for disabled persons. Morrissey, The Americans with Disabilities Act: The Disabling of the Bar Examination Process?, The Bar Examiner, May 1993, at 9, 9. It imposes new standards of conduct upon bar examiners and similar entities ... with respect to disabled individuals [who are] pursuing professional careers. Id. The extent to which the ADA applies to bar examinations has been the subject of recent scholarly analysis. See Rogers, The ADA, Title VII and the Bar Examination: The Nature and Extent of the ADA's Coverage of Bar Examinations, 36 How.L.J. 1 (1993). The issues that confront boards of bar examiners in complying with the ADA have also been carefully considered by two special counsel to the National Conference of Bar Examiners. Fedo & Brown, Accommodating the Disabled Under the ADA: The Issues for Bar Examiners, The Bar Examiner, Aug. 1992, at 6. The ADA provides that an individual is disabled if, inter alia, he or she has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of his or her major life activities. 42 U.S.C.A. § 12102(2). Once such a disability has been established, the ADA generally requires the persons or entities designated by the Act to make reasonable accommodations or modifications for the disability. See, e.g., 42 U.S.C.A. §§ 12112, 12131(2), 12182(b)(2)(A)(ii), 12184(b)(2)(A). Title II of the ADA provides: Subject to the provisions of this [title], no qualified individual with a disability shall, by reason of such disability, be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefits of the services, programs, or activities of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination by any such entity. 42 U.S.C.A. § 12132. Admission to the Delaware bar is governed exclusively by this Court. In re Hudson, Del.Supr., 402 A.2d 369 (1979). The application and testing procedures are administered by the Board, which is appointed by this Court. Supr.Ct.R. 51 and 52. The Board, as an instrumentality of this Court, constitutes a public entity within the meaning of Title II. See 42 U.S.C.A. § 12131(1); Supr.Ct.R. 51. See also Fedo & Brown, Accommodating the Disabled Under the ADA: The Issues for Bar Examiners, The Bar Examiner, Aug. 1992, at 6, 6. Consequently, as a public entity, the Board must make reasonable accommodations to prevent the de facto exclusion which may occur when disabled but otherwise qualified individuals are limited by standard administrative or other operating procedures from participating fully in the examination process. Fedo & Brown, Accommodating the Disabled Under the ADA: The Issues for Bar Examiners, The Bar Examiner, Aug. 1992, at 6, 6. The regulations implementing the ADA state that Title II is applicable to licensing and certification programs. 28 C.F.R. § 35.130(b)(6). Title II and its regulations, however, contain no specific standards for the administration of bar examinations, or of other professional licensing tests. Nevertheless, specific guidance is available regarding the administration of examinations in the regulations promulgated to implement Title III of the ADA. Title III, in part, provides: Any person that offers examinations or courses related to applications, licensing, certification, or credentialing for secondary or postsecondary education, professional, or trade purposes shall offer such examinations or courses in a place and manner accessible to persons with disabilities or offer alternative accessible arrangements for such individuals. 42 U.S.C.A. § 12189 (emphasis added). Title III of the ADA generally applies only to private entities. However, in the interpretive analysis of its Title III regulations, the United States Department of Justice has taken the position that [e]xaminations covered by this section would include a bar exam. ADA Handbook, III-100, Oct. 1991. [4] See 28 C.F.R. § 36.309(a). See also Amicus Curiae Memorandum of Law for the United States, at 4 n. 2, Rosenthal v. New York State Bd. of Law Examiners, (S.D.N.Y. Apr. 13, 1992) (No. 92 Civ. 1100). At least one federal court has agreed with the Department of Justice's construction of the ADA by applying both Title II and III with regard to the administration of a bar examination. D'Amico v. New York State Bd. of Law Examiners, 813 F.Supp. 217, 221 (W.D.N.Y.1993). [5]