February 20, 2026
A law student secured a historic win in North Carolina, marking the first case to recognize endometriosis as a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
A 27-year-old law student has made history after winning the first case in North Carolina to recognize endometriosis as a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Christian “Cece” Worley recently secured a near six-figure settlement in her disability discrimination case against the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, alleging the agency failed to provide accommodations after she disclosed symptoms of endometriosis in May 2022, USA Today reports.
The landmark case sets a new precedent in North Carolina, paving the way for endometriosis to be recognized as a disability and potentially strengthening workplace accommodation protections for those living with the condition.
“I knew that I wasn’t alone in this fight, and I knew that there were hundreds of other women who also suffer from this,” Worley said of filing her amended complaint and representing herself. “If there was any time to be able to make a change, it could be now.”
Worley says she spent much of her life battling menstrual pain she described as “hell on Earth,” and it wasn’t until college that a concerned professor suggested she might have endometriosis, a condition affecting about 1 in 10 women that often goes undiagnosed for years.
For years, Worley went undiagnosed as she struggled with severe symptoms at work. After requesting remote days during her menstrual cycle and time off for fertility appointments, she says her employer denied accommodations and warned her about discipline.
Though she initially lost a workplace complaint and was told by several lawyers her case was unlikely to succeed, Worley chose to represent herself, ultimately securing a settlement that led to North Carolina’s first ruling recognizing endometriosis as a disability under the ADA.
“Not only does it validate hundreds of millions of women’s experiences that this pain is real, but it also gives them something to look to legally,” she said. “When they’re in HR offices, they can say, ‘Hey, this is something that can be accommodated under the ADA, so what can be done for me in my situation?’”
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