Are Sex and Sleep “Major Life Activities”?
As we discussed briefly on Friday, the answer to the above question is “yes,” according to a pair of recent federal court decisions.
The federal appeals court for the District of Columbia ruled that sexual relations and sleeping constitute “major life activities” for the purpose of determining whether an employee is “disabled” under the law. (Adams v. Rice, No. 07-5101; Desmond v. Mukasey, No. 07-5139)
The Test
An employee is “disabled” if he or she has a physical or mental impairment that “substantially limits one or more major life activities.” Major life activities previously identified by courts include breathing, seeing, hearing, sitting, standing, walking, learning, caring for oneself, performing manual tasks and working, among other things.
Sex?
Kathy Adams filed a lawsuit claiming that the government denied her employment because she was a breast cancer survivor. She alleged that her condition substantially limited her ability to engage in the major life activity of sexual relations.
The lower court rejected Adams’ contention, concluding that sexual relations is not a major life activity. Adams appealed.
The appeals court reversed. It relied on an earlier Supreme Court decision holding that “[r]eproduction and the sexual dynamics surrounding it are central to the life process itself.” Accordingly, the appeals court reached the “self-evident conclusion” that sexual relations could qualify as a “major life activity.”
Sleep?
Martin Desmond also sued the government, alleging that it discriminated against him based on his post traumatic stress disorder which impaired his ability to sleep. Like the Adams case, the lower court concluded that no reasonable jury could find in Desmond’s favor.
The appeals court reversed. Citing various sources ranging all the way from Macbeth to biology textbooks, the court concluded that sleep is “central to the life process itself” and thus unquestionably a “major life activity” under the law.
The court also declined to require Desmond to prove that his sleep deprivation negatively impacted his work performance. The court stated: “neither the statute nor the regulations interpreting it include any indication that the major life activity of sleeping is substantially limited only if some other life activity is also limited.”
What’s Next?
Both cases now return to the lower court. The juries will then decide whether Adams is substantially limited in her ability to engage in sex and whether Desmond is substantially limited in his ability to sleep. If the plaintiffs pass those tests, then the juries will decide if the government discriminated against them.
For now, these decisions apply only in the D.C. Circuit. However, it’s not inconceivable that other courts could follow suit. In fact, the Ninth Circuit has already found sex to be a major life activity and several other circuits have found sleep to be included as well.
Stay tuned for more.