New amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA") will take effect on January 1, 2009. The new law is referred to as the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 ("ADAA").

      The ADAA amends the ADA in several important respects. The ADAA will require that the definition of "disability" be interpreted broadly. The amendment will overturn a United States Supreme Court decision, in which the Court held that the ADA should be interpreted strictly. Furthermore, the ADAA overrules another Supreme Court decision that allowed mitigating measures to be considered when determining whether a person was disabled.

      Another important change is the expansion of who may be "regarded as" being disabled. Many court decisions require the person to prove that his/her employer "regarded" the person as being disabled. Under the new amendments, this burden of proof may disappear because a person could be regarded as disabled as a result of the physical or mental impairment itself.

      These are only a few examples of the ADAA's expansion of the ADA to more individuals. With these amendments, the ADA will have much broader applicability in the workplace. More workers will gain protection under the ADAA, and as a result, reasonable accommodations will have to be made for a greater number of employees.