The court held that in deciding whether the physician-shareholders should be considered employees for purposes of coverage under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), the common law element of control is the main guidepost.

for about ten years, Deborah Wells filed suit against Clackamas Gastroenterology, alleging that the clinic violated the ADA in terminating her employment.

The District Court granted Clackamas' motion, deciding that the four physician-shareholders were more similar to partners in a partnership and thus would not be considered employees.

The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed, holding that Clackamas could not avoid liability in such situations by asserting similarity to a partnership, while taking advantage of having a corporate status.

[2][3] In a 7-2 opinion delivered by Justice Stevens, the Court held that the common law element of control should be the main guidepost in deciding whether the director-shareholder physicians should be considered employees for the purposes of the ADA.