Worley filed the lawsuit without an attorney in June 2023 in the Eastern District of North Carolina after repeated denials of legal representation by various lawyers. Worley says she was told by legal professionals that the law surrounding endometriosis as an ADA disability was “too open to interpretation” and not “fully developed.” Despite this, Worley’s pro se case (Proffitt v. NCDPS, No. 5:23-cv-00306) survived summary judgment. On July 18, 2025, federal Magistrate Judge Robert T. Numbers II found sufficient evidence that a jury could conclude Worley’s request to telework on only the first day of her menstrual cycle was reasonable, and that NCDPS’ denial may have constituted unlawful discrimination. Notably, he also found that the symptoms of her endometriosis were severe enough to establish disability under the ADA. The magistrate judge’s order was later adopted in full by District Judge Terence Williams Boyle on September 30, 2025.
To the best of available case law, this is the first time in North Carolina that endometriosis has been recognized as an ADA disability, and it appears to be the first time in the nation that a plaintiff was allowed to proceed to trial on this legal theory. The case settled on December 19, 2025, and included favorable monetary terms for Worley and a commitment by NCDPS to implement enhanced, department-wide ADA training for management personnel.