ALBANY, N.Y. ― A federal judge has dismissed a graduate student’s discrimination lawsuit against Fordham University over demands for mental health records before she could be readmitted following a medical leave.
Judge Jesse Furman says Emily Pierce’s complaint fails to show she was treated differently than other students due to her disability.
Pierce, who was seeking $10 million in damages, says Fordham violated her civil rights by discriminating because of her mental illness. She provided a psychiatrist’s letter saying she was fit to return.
Fordham said her refusal to share records impeded its ability to assess whether she was capable of returning.
Furman says Pierce also failed to show retaliation because she filed a federal discrimination complaint against Fordham, a Jesuit school in the Bronx.
She says Thursday she’ll appeal.
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