Over one billion people worldwide suffer from a disability. Equal access in education and employment for this community of people is a  primary focus of the disability rights movement. The barriers to achieving this are compounded in developing nations, where jurisprudence on this issue remains lacking. Foremost among these barriers is the definition of disability adopted in varying jurisdictions, which often focuses on the medical, rather than social, model of disability. One of the most significant ways to combat discrimination against persons with disabilities remains the right of reasonable accommodation, first proposed in the United States of America (‘USA’) in the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act, 1990. This paper adopts a cross-jurisdictional approach to the issues of defining disability and adoption of the right of a reasonable accommodation in the spheres of education and employment, comparing the construct of the Americans with Disabilities Act, 1990 against the (Indian) Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, with the aim of providing suggestions to fortify Indian jurisprudence in this area of law.