Laguana v. United Airlines, Inc.

Opinion

NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS JUL 8 2026 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK U.S. COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

JOSEPH LAGUANA, No. 25-3978 D.C. No. Plaintiff - Appellant, 1:22-cv-00027 v. MEMORANDUM*

UNITED AIRLINES, INC.,

Defendant - Appellee.

Appeal from the District Court of Guam Ramona V. Manglona, Chief District Judge, Presiding

Submitted June 23, 2026** Honolulu, Hawaii

Before: N.R. SMITH, MILLER, and JOHNSTONE, Circuit Judges.

Joseph Laguana, an employee of United Airlines, requested and received

medical leave due to his asthma. After exhausting his paid leave, he went on

unpaid medical leave until he was terminated over two years later. Laguana then

brought this action against United under the Americans with Disabilities Act

* This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3. ** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2). (ADA), alleging that United failed to provide reasonable accommodations for his

disability. The district court granted summary judgment to United. We have

jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we affirm.

We review a grant of summary judgment de novo. Maner v. Dignity Health,

9 F.4th 1114, 1119 (9th Cir. 2021). Summary judgment is appropriate when “there

is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment

as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a).

Although Laguana brought several claims against United, the only issue in

this appeal is the claim that United violated the ADA by failing to provide Laguana

with a reasonable accommodation beyond extended medical leave and by failing to

engage in an interactive process to determine the appropriate reasonable

accommodation that would allow him to perform his job. See 42 U.S.C.

§ 12112(b)(5)(A); 29 C.F.R. § 1630.2(o)(3). Under the ADA, “once an employee

requests an accommodation . . . the employer must engage in an interactive process

with the employee to determine the appropriate reasonable accommodation.”

Zivkovic v. Southern Cal. Edison Co., 302 F.3d 1080, 1089 (9th Cir. 2002)

(emphasis added); accord Barnett v. U.S. Air, Inc., 228 F.3d 1105, 1114 (9th Cir.

2000) (en banc), vacated on other grounds, 535 U.S. 391 (2002). But United

granted Laguana’s only accommodation request—extended medical leave.

Laguana never requested any other accommodations from United. United satisfied

2 25-3978 its obligation to engage in the interactive process because, at “each step of the way,

[United] extended [Laguana’s] leave,” which was “the only accommodation

requested.” Garcia v. Salvation Army, 918 F.3d 997, 1010 (9th Cir. 2019). For that

reason, Laguana’s reasonable-accommodation claim fails.

AFFIRMED.

3 25-3978