Mendoza v. The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Los Angeles, 2016 WL 1459214 (9th Cir. 2016)

Alice Mendoza worked as a full-time bookkeeper for a small parish church. She took sick leave for 10 months, during which time the pastor of the church took over the bookkeeping duties himself and determined that Mendoza's job could be done by a part-time bookkeeper.

When Mendoza returned from her leave of absence, there was no longer a full-time bookkeeping position available, so the pastor offered her a part-time job, which Mendoza declined before suing for violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"). The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the Archbishop, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed, holding that Mendoza failed to establish that a full-time position was available and, therefore, that a discriminatory reason more likely than not motivated the employer.