SCOTUS Disability-Bias Damages Case Likely to Turn on Contract Theory

The U.S. Supreme Court Nov. 30 will hear oral arguments in a case that will likely clarify if emotional distress damages are available for violations of federal anti-discrimination laws.

The underlying suit tests a deaf woman’s ability to recover those damages for a health-care provider’s violation of a federal law requiring entities that receive federal money to make sure they can communicate effectively with deaf and hard-of-hearing people.

But the justices’ decision on the scope of damages available under the Rehabilitation Act also will affect race and sex discrimination lawsuits brought under Title VI and Title IX, an attorney familiar ...