Fired Medical Marijuana User Can Sue for Disability Bias

A qualified medical marijuana user in Massachusetts can pursue a disability discrimination claim after she was fired for testing positive for the drug, the state’s top court ruled.

“This is a big deal” because it’s “the first decision” nationwide in which a court found “affirmative employment-related protection” for a medical marijuana user in the workplace, said Dale Deitchler, a Littler Mendelson shareholder in Minneapolis. He represents employers and tracks legal developments on medical marijuana.

Cristina Barbuto, who was terminated by Advantage Sales and Marketing even though she told the employer about her legal medical marijuana use, raised a plausible claim ...