Huber v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Huber (plaintiff), a Wal-Mart (defendant) grocery-order filler, permanently injured her arm and hand and could no longer perform her job's essential functions; she asked to be automatically reassigned to a vacant router position for which she was qualified. Wal-Mart's neutral policy required all applicants, including disabled employees seeking reassignment, to compete for open positions based on qualifications, and Wal-Mart hired a more qualified candidate for the router job, eventually placing Huber in a different, lower-paying position elsewhere. Huber sued under the ADA, arguing the statute required automatic preference over other applicants as a reasonable accommodation; the district court granted Huber summary judgment, and Wal-Mart appealed.