DISABILITY RIGHTS
Professor Herrington
SPRING 2003 FINAL EXAMINATION
Instructions
1. You
have two (2) hours to complete this exam.
2. This
is a closed book exam. No
materials may be used for this exam.
3. There
are 3 sections to this exam.
Section A: Essay: You have one hour to answer this
question.
Section B: Short Essay: Complete one question (2, 3 or 4). You should spend 30 minutes on this section.
Section C: Short Answer: Complete all questions in this
section. You should spend 2-3 minutes
per question. You have 30 minutes to
answer all questions.
4. Write
your answers in the blue books provided to you. Please write only on the right hand side of the page. Double- space your work, written or typed.
5. >Write
your exam number on your exam envelope, at the top of this exam question
packet and your used blue books. Do not use your name, student ID number or your Social Security
Number on any exam materials.
6. At
the conclusion of the exam, return all exam materials to the exam envelope
and submit it to the proctor. Do
not seal the envelope.
A. All
students must do Question 1 in Section A. You should spend about an hour on this question.
1. Fred is visually impaired, 20/100 in both eyes which has a 60%
chance of being correctable to 20/60 in his left eye and 20/40 in his right eye
if he undergoes expensive laser surgery which he cannot afford. Fred recently received training in typing
from dictation from a local rehabilitation organization. His training program progress was excellent,
and on his last test he typed 90 words per minute with three errors from
dictation.
Acme received a new
federal grant for its top-secret radiation research laboratory, so advertised
for a new office assistant who could type at least 70 words per minute with
fewer than two errors to help the twenty scientists working in the adjacent
laboratory type research notes from time to time.
After Fred's
interview with Acme, he was shown into a small room where there were ten other
applicants. Acme gave each of the
applicants a questionnaire to fill out regarding their work record and any
history of drug and alcohol abuse. Acme
told all of the applicants that, prior to hiring, they would have to pass a
blood test for illegal drugs and alcohol and be screened for diseases that
could worsen with radiation exposure.
While the others
filled out their own forms, at Fred's request, Acme helped him fill out the
questionnaire by reading out the questions and writing down his answers for
him. Fred passed the blood test, but
when he went for his typing test, he was handed handwritten copy and asked to
type a letter. He said that he would
like to take the typing test from dictation, and was confident that he could
score 100 words per minute with less than two errors under such
conditions. Acme refused, stating that
none of its employees dictate, and even if they did, the dictation machines
were too expensive. Acme said that
every one would understand implicitly that a typist would be required to type
from copy; the company had not considered it necessary to put such an obvious
requirement into the job description.
Discuss Fred's potential claims and
Acme's potential defenses. What factors
should the court consider? What are the
likely outcomes of each of Fred's claims?
End of Exam