In 1995, after spending nearly two decades in and out of institutional settings, Lois Curtis - along with her friend, Elaine Wilson - filed a lawsuit against Tommy Olmstead, the Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Human Resources, because they were forced into institutional settings instead of receiving services and support in the community. The lawsuit became known as Olmstead v. L.C. and E.W. and after spending a few years in the lower courts, the suit went up to the Supreme Court of the United States in 1999. In this landmark case, the Supreme Court ruled that people with disabilities have the right to receive services and support in the most integrated setting appropriate for their needs and that unjustified segregation of disabled people in institutions is discrimination and a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Not only did this decision help Lois and Elaine to be able to eventually live in the community, the Olmstead decision helped disabled people across the nation to live in freedom. Thanks to Lois and Elaine, many people with disabilities have been able to live in their own homes in the community.