
Scott A. Sears
Associate
Overview
Areas of Focus
Practice
News & Insights
07.28.2026
Client Advisories
No Notice, No Duty: The Third Circuit Clarifies When Employers Must Accommodate a Disability
“The disability-discrimination and medical-leave laws are shields against discrimination, not get-out-of-discipline-free cards.” That is how the Third Circuit opened its recent decision in Hileman v. West Penn Allegheny Health System, Inc. (3d Cir. July 20, 2026), affirming dismissal of an employee’s case against her former employer. The point drives the ruling: before an employer must accommodate an employee, the employee generally must disclose the disability and clearly ask for help. An employee who stays silent until they are facing discipline cannot recast that discipline as discrimination. This decision is a useful roadmap for employers as to when the duty to accommodate a disability is triggered.
05.15.2026
Speaking Engagements & Seminars
2026 HR Boot Camp
Archer Labor & Employment attorneys will present the 2026 Chamber of Commerce of Southern New Jersey’s Annual “HR Boot Camp.”
05.12.2026
In the News
New Jersey's New 'ABC Test' Rules Leave Room for Further Clarification, Litigators Say
Scott Sears was recently quoted in a Law.com article discussing New Jersey’s newly adopted regulations governing employee versus independent contractor classification under the state’s “ABC Test.”