What exactly is an “indefinite” leave? Does it mean the employee has no clue when an employee will return? What about a somewhat specific but still fuzzy answer—like “I’ll try to be back in a couple months?”
It’s an important question because the ADA makes one thing very clear: employers are not required to accommodate indefinite leaves. But figuring out when a leave actually crosses that line is where things get tricky.
Defining “Indefinite”
A recent decision from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals sheds a little light. In Coffman v. Nexstar Media Inc. (No. 23-2253, July 22, 2025), the court ruled that after six months of absence—and no firm return-to-work date—the employee’s leave was no longer a reasonable accommodation under the ADA.
Here’s what happened: Coffman, an account executive, experienced a very difficult pregnancy and recovery. She used all 12 weeks of her FMLA leave, then asked for additional time off due to medical complications. As her FMLA was winding down, her employer reached out to ask about a return date. Coffman replied that she couldn’t provide one—and, on top of that, told her employer not to contact her further, which didn’t sit well with them.
She eventually asked for another 4–6 weeks of recovery time. By then, she had already been out for more than five months, with no clear end in sight. Her employer terminated her employment.
On appeal, Coffman argued that her leave wasn’t truly indefinite—after all, she had said she’d “probably [be back] in September or October.” But the court disagreed. While the ADA doesn’t demand an exact return date, the judges found Coffman’s two-month window to provide “meaningful uncertainty.” Her request was therefore “indefinite” and outside ADA protection.
So, what can we take away from Coffman?
There are a few important key learnings here.
- First, courts look closely at how both sides handle the interactive process. In this case, Coffman’s refusal to communicate with her employer ultimately didn’t help her position.
- The EEOC defines “indefinite” leave as a situation where an employee can’t say whether or when they’ll return, if at all. But Coffman shows that even a projected timeline that’s too open-ended—like “probably September or October”—might be indefinite enough to be unreasonable.
- For employers, that means you may have stronger footing to deny leave requests that are just too vague.
Of course, “too vague” is often in the eye of the beholder—that’s why ADA consulting (and cases like this one) matter so much. Expect more litigation to clarify these gray areas, and we’ll keep you posted along the way.
For more information about how AbsenceResources (formerly FMLASource) can help your team remain compliant with the ADA, please visit here.
