Rawdin v. Am. Bd. of Pediatrics (Summary)

ADA – BOARD CERTIFICATION EXAMINATION

Rawdin v. Am. Bd. of Pediatrics, No. 12-6781 (E.D. Pa. Nov. 6, 2013)

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania denied a pediatrician’s request for injunctive relief in a suit brought against the American Board of Pediatrics (the “Board”) holding that the pediatrician was not “disabled” under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and that the accommodations he sought for taking the board examination were not reasonable.

The pediatrician struggled with a memory deficiency caused by a brain tumor.  He claimed that because of this he was unable to pass the Board’s exam and achieve board certification.  The pediatrician ultimately sued the Board seeking a court order, finding that “he is qualified for board certification and direct[ing] [the Board] to award him certification without requiring him to pass the Exam.”  In the alternative, the pediatrician requested the court to require the Board to provide the accommodation of substituting a different type of exam for the multiple choice exam used by the Board.  The court denied the pediatrician’s request, first finding that he was not disabled under the ADA because his impairment did not cause a substantial limitation in the major life activities of test-taking and work.  According to the court, “[b]ecause the evidence does not show [the pediatrician’s] test-taking abilities are lower than those of the average person in the general population, the court cannot find [he] is substantially limited in the major life activity of test-taking.  The court also held that his requested accommodation was not reasonable under the ADA because the accommodation would “devalue” the certification process.