Case: Out of Court Settlement between the United States and the Massachusetts Trial Court
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Case Summary
On March 24, 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice signed an out of court settlement agreement with the Massachusetts Trial Court to ensure that the Commonwealth's drug courts did not discriminate against people taking medication to manage opioid use disorder.
After receiving a complaint that some drug courts in Massachusetts had prevented participants from using prescription medications like buprenorphine or methadone to manage opioid use disorder, the Department's Civil Rights Division opened an investigation into the court system. When the investigation began is unclear, however, the settlement noted the Department and the Commonwealth had been communicating about the drug courts’ policies since the Fall of 2019. During the investigation, the Department found that some drug courts either required participants to stop using these drugs or required participants to switch the drugs they were taking. Though the Commonwealth denied wrongdoing in the public settlement agreement, these actions would violate the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) because opioid use disorder is a covered disability.
In the agreement, the Commonwealth agreed to post and abide by a policy that it had developed along with the Department and finalized in January of 2020. The policy stated that decisions regarding opioid disorder management medication be made only by medical professionals and required drug court staff not to express preferences about medications or order participants to use or abstain from a particular medication. The Commonwealth agreed to monitor its drug court system for compliance with this policy, to route future complaints about ADA violations to a central office for investigations, and to require the chief justices of its courts to report annually about the number of such complaints received and the results of those investigations. The Department was allowed to review the Commonwealth’s compliance with the agreement for one year, meet with state officials to discuss compliance after six months, and receive the first annual report of complaints and investigations.
Summary Authors
Jonah Hudson-Erdman (4/10/2022)
People
Dorchak, Gregory J. (Massachusetts)
Moakley, John Joseph (Massachusetts)
Bello, John A. (Massachusetts)
Documents in the Clearinghouse
Docket
Last updated Aug. 30, 2023, 2:40 p.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.Case Details
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Case Ongoing: Yes
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division
Plaintiff Type(s):
U.S. Dept of Justice plaintiff
Attorney Organizations:
U.S. Dept. of Justice Civil Rights Division
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq.
Special Case Type(s):
Available Documents:
Injunctive (or Injunctive-like) Relief
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff OR Mixed
Relief Granted:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Content of Injunction:
Develop anti-discrimination policy
Implement complaint/dispute resolution process
Order Duration: 2022 - 2023
Issues
General/Misc.:
Disability and Disability Rights:
Discrimination Area:
Discrimination Basis:
Disability (inc. reasonable accommodations)
Medical/Mental Health Care:
Case Summary of Out of Court Settlement between the United States and the Massachusetts Trial Court, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/43266/ (last updated 4/10/2022).