What to Do After an ADA Violation

Reviewed by Yael Krieger (YK), Editor-in-Chief — Disability Rights & ADA Litigation Practice. Updated May 2026.

The period immediately after an ADA violation — whether it is a denied accommodation, a discriminatory termination, or a hostile work environment situation — is critical for preserving your legal rights. The EEOC charge deadline (180 or 300 days from the discriminatory act) is the single most important procedural requirement for Title I employment claims, and missing it almost certainly bars your federal case regardless of merit. Contemporaneous documentation, created close in time to the events, will be far more persuasive than reconstructed accounts prepared months later when litigation has begun. This guide covers the steps to take, in the order they should be taken.

Step 1: Document immediately and thoroughly

Write a detailed contemporaneous account of what happened as soon as possible. Include: the specific dates of accommodation requests (verbal and written), the employer’s responses to each, the name and title of every person you communicated with about the accommodation, the exact content of any conversations, and any witnesses present. Save all written communications — emails, texts, letters, performance reviews, accommodation request forms, and HR records — on personal devices and personal cloud storage that you control independently of your employer. After a termination or forced leave, you typically lose access to company email and systems immediately.

Document the timeline of the adverse action itself: what was said, by whom, when, in what context, and what reason was given. Note whether the stated reason was consistent with how the employer had described your performance before the accommodation request. Courts look for the gap between how an employer described an employee before and after a protected request — inconsistency is probative of pretext.

If your disability is visible or involves physical limitations, document the nature of your impairment and any medical documentation you provided to your employer. Keep copies of physician letters, FMLA certifications, or other medical information you shared — these establish what the employer knew about your condition and when, which is essential to proving they were aware of the need for accommodation.

Step 2: Continue performing your job duties

If you are still employed, do not resign unless conditions are genuinely intolerable (the constructive discharge standard). Courts require ADA plaintiffs to mitigate their damages — remaining in the job (even in a deteriorated situation) maintains your back pay claim and preserves your employment relationship while you evaluate your legal options. A voluntary resignation is generally treated as a break in the back pay period: you can only recover back pay from resignation to judgment if you can establish constructive discharge, which requires a high threshold of intolerable conditions specifically designed to force you out.

Continue following workplace policies, attending work, and meeting deadlines to the extent your condition allows. Documented performance problems that arise after a resignation or refusal to comply with policies can complicate a back pay claim even in cases with strong liability evidence.

Step 3: File an EEOC charge — watch the deadline

For Title I employment ADA claims, filing an EEOC charge is a mandatory prerequisite to filing a federal lawsuit. You must file within 180 days of the discriminatory act (or 300 days in states with a state fair employment practices agency, which applies in most major states). This deadline runs from the specific act of discrimination — typically the date of the accommodation denial, the date of the adverse employment action, or in hostile environment cases, the last act of harassment.

The 180/300-day deadline is treated as jurisdictional. Missing it almost certainly bars your federal ADA Title I claim, regardless of how strong the facts are. There are very limited equitable tolling exceptions — active concealment by the employer, filing in the wrong agency with timely notice to the EEOC — but these are narrow. File well before the deadline, not on it.

How to file: online at publicportal.eeoc.gov, by phone at 1-800-669-4000, or in person at your nearest EEOC field office. The charge must include: your contact information; the employer’s name, address, and employee count; a description of the discriminatory act; the approximate dates; and identification of the protected characteristic (disability). You do not need an attorney to file the charge, though an attorney can help you frame the facts most effectively for the investigation and subsequent litigation.

Step 4: Understand the EEOC process

After you file, the EEOC notifies the employer and begins its process. The EEOC may: attempt to mediate the dispute (often within a few months of filing); investigate the charge (which can take many months to over a year); issue a determination of reasonable cause or no cause; or close the charge without investigation and issue a right-to-sue letter. The EEOC investigates a relatively small percentage of charges in depth; most result in either voluntary mediation or issuance of a right-to-sue letter after a limited inquiry.

Once you receive a right-to-sue letter, you have 90 days to file a lawsuit in federal court. This 90-day window is also strictly enforced — missing it means your case is time-barred. You can also file in federal court 180 days after filing the charge without waiting for the right-to-sue letter, if you prefer not to wait for the EEOC investigation to conclude. An attorney can advise on the timing strategy for your situation.

Step 5: Evaluate state law disability claims

Many states have disability discrimination laws that provide additional or broader protections than the federal ADA: lower employee thresholds (covering employers with fewer than 15 employees), longer statutes of limitations, broader definitions of disability, and in some states, availability of emotional distress damages or stronger remedies than the federal cap allows. California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) covers employers with 5 or more employees. New York State Human Rights Law covers employers with 4 or more employees. New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination has no employee minimum.

State law claims can be filed alongside federal ADA claims in the same proceeding through supplemental jurisdiction, or in state court. An attorney familiar with your state’s disability discrimination law can advise whether parallel state claims provide meaningful additional recovery beyond the federal ADA and what the applicable state administrative filing requirements are.

Step 6: Consult an employment attorney as early as possible

ADA cases are procedurally demanding — the EEOC charge requirement, the 180/300-day and 90-day deadlines, the interactive process requirements, and the complex damages framework all benefit from professional guidance. An experienced employment attorney can evaluate the strength of your claim, advise on EEOC filing strategy, assess whether state law claims provide additional recovery, and negotiate or litigate most effectively on your behalf.

Finding an attorney: most employment attorneys who handle ADA cases work on contingency — they receive a percentage of the recovery only if you win. The § 12205 attorney fee provision also compensates attorneys for successful cases independent of the contingency agreement. State bar associations, the National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA), and the EEOC’s own resources can help identify qualified attorneys in your area. Most offer free initial consultations. Consult an attorney before the EEOC deadline, not after — the quality of the charge filing directly affects the scope of the subsequent lawsuit.

Return to the calculator, see how ADA damages are calculated, or read the FAQ.