Bultemeyer v. Fort Wayne Comm Schools

In Bultemeyer v. Fort Wayne Comm Schools, 100 F3d 1281, 1285 (CA 7, 1996), the court held that the employer should have reconsidered its decision to terminate the plaintiff's employment when, within a few hours of having terminated the employee, the defendant received a letter from the plaintiff's physician requesting additional medical leave. The court noted: FWCS the employer maintains that Bultemeyer never asked for a reasonable accommodation and that the letter from Dr. Fawver was an instance of "too little, too late." The trial court also saw the situation this way, going so far as to suggest that Bultemeyer asked Dr. Fawver to "make up" the recommendation for a less stressful work environment, in an attempt to justify his failure to report for work. In this way, the trial court is examining the facts in the light least favorable to Bultemeyer, the non-moving party, where instead it should be viewing them in the light most favorable to him. . . . FWCS claims that the note from Dr. Fawver came too late for it to respond, because FWCS did not receive the note until after it had fired Bultemeyer. However, FWCS received the note the very same day (not two days later as the trial court mistakenly found). A few hours' tardiness should not be the reason for cutting off the interactive process and cutting off a person's rights under the ADA. This was not a lengthy, inexcusable delay. . . . Even though the letter came after FWCS decided to fire him, FWCS could have used the opportunity it presented to reconsider the decision to terminate his employment and include Bultemeyer and Dr. Fawver in the discussions. That would have been a proper way to engage in the interactive process. Instead, FWCS "failed to communicate, by way of initiation or response," and the interactive process broke down. . . .