NY Court Rule Poses Privacy, Bias Concerns for Disabled Parties

The New York court system’s new rule allowing one party in a case to request disability accommodations without notifying the other party poses privacy and bias concerns for litigants and lawyers, according to attorneys and disability rights advocates.

While sources agreed there are good intentions behind the recently finalized rule, which applies to the state’s trial courts, some said it falls short of its stated goal of “promoting access to justice for individuals with invisible disabilities” and properly balancing “confidentiality against the due process and ethical concerns implicated.”

“I do worry that the finalized language falls short, and in some ...