Welcome to the 2024 NLADA Annual Conference! We are so excited to host you in Atlanta this year.
Session materials are available in the Learning Lab, where you can also claim CLE credit and provide session feedback. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to learninglab@nlada.org.
This session will address the rights of people with disabilities to access the courts and the inadequacies of established procedures to provide reasonable accommodations to individuals who need them in order to be able to fully participate in court proceedings. Two states, Washington and Illinois, have created a clear process to receive and process requests for reasonable accommodations that have provided clarity to both people who request accommodations as well as to court staff. The presenters will discuss both the established processes in Washington and Illinois in addition to their efforts at Cleveland Legal Aid to develop a similar procedure in Ohio through the creation of proposed statewide rules and advocacy, the drafting of uniform documents that can be used to request reasonable accommodations, and the development of systemic litigation efforts to force change. The session will also address the difficulties that people with disabilities face with respect to accessing the court system and requesting accommodations.
