Interrogatories
(Massachusetts Fair Employment Practices Act) (Defendant to Plaintiff) (MA)

Summary

These Interrogatories may be used to assist a defendant in obtaining information from a plaintiff in a discrimination and/or accommodation action brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or the Massachusetts Fair Employment Practices Act in the Massachusetts Superior Court. This template includes drafting notes, practical guidance, and alternate clauses. The Massachusetts Fair Employment Practices Law (the Law), Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 151B et seq., protects employees from discrimination in the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment based on their membership in a protected class. 804 CMR 3.01(1). Under the Fair Employment Practices Act, an "employer" is defined by the Law as any employer with six or more employees, other than nonprofit exclusively social clubs, fraternal associations, or corporations. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 151B, § 1(5); 804 CMR 3.01(1). The act, in part, aims to protect employees from employers who fail to provide a reasonable accommodation to a qualified employee or job applicant with a handicap. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 151B, § 4. An employer may decline to provide a qualified employee or applicant with a handicap a reasonable accommodation if that accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the employer's business. Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 151B, § 4(16). These interrogatories may be used by an employer to obtain information in discovery regarding the underlying discrimination claim. For more information on the ADA and litigating claims under the ADA, see Americans with Disabilities Act: Guidance for Employers and Disability Employment Discrimination Defense Checklist (ADA Claims). For a wide variety of discrimination and retaliation litigation forms, see the Employment Litigation forms page. For information on state laws governing discrimination and retaliation claims, see Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation State Practice Notes Chart.