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Was it OK to fire worker who provided medical document that was incomplete?

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Supervisor’s take-home: Carefully review medical documents given to you by employees as soon as possible. That way, you can quickly confirm that all mandatory information is included. If something is missing, ask the staff member to provide it.

What happened: A worker who’d been diagnosed with depression and anxiety disorder told his supervisor that he planned to take time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to deal with his health issues. One day before the start of his leave, the staffer submitted a doctor’s note confirming his health ailments and his need for 30 days of leave. His supervisor glanced at the form and said to him, “I’ll see you in one month.” The man went on leave for 30 days.

What people did: While the employee was on FMLA leave, a senior-level manager noticed that the medical form submitted by the employee’s doctor didn’t include the physician’s address, phone number and email address. A certified letter was sent to the worker, telling him to provide the missing information by a certain date. The crew member didn’t respond to the certified letter. Four days after the deadline for submission of the requested information, he was terminated.

Legal challenge: The crew member sued for FMLA interference.

Result: The employer won. The court said the doctor’s note from the man didn’t include mandatory information such as address and phone number, so it was incomplete. The employer mailed the worker a written request to provide the information – as it was legally required to do – but the man ignored the letter. His failure to provide the mandatory information doomed his case.

The skinny: It’s the responsibility of workers – not their employers – to address deficiencies in doctors’ notes and other medical documents.

Cite: Byther v. Village of University Park, U.S. District Court., N.D. Illinois, No. 23-cv-5807, 6/3/26.

(From the June 26, 2026, issue of HR Manager’s Legal Alert for Supervisors. To start your no-obligation trial subscription to the publication right now, please click here.)