The final verdict in a civil case against actor Clint Eastwood this year was supposed to reaffirm the validity of a wide-ranging federal law for the disabled.
Instead, it has pushed the Americans with Disabilities Act back to Capitol Hill, 10 years after it was signed into law.
The ADA, hailed as a landmark civil rights act in 1990, called for all buildings of public accommodation to include access for the disabled. It included all new and remodeled buildings.
In September, a northern California couple sued Eastwood, owner of the recently remodeled Mission Ranch resort in Carmel, for what they said was discrimination because the resort was in non-compliance of the ADA.
The jury ruled that while the resort failed to comply with the ADA, Eastwood was not monetarily liable for the punitive damages of $500,000 because the plaintiffs could not prove they intended to stay at the resort.
– Property Owners Request Notification
Due in large part to the case, property owners and their attorneys are now demanding 90 days notice before being served for civil litigation.
Currently, two identical bills of notification are stalled in Congress. HR 3590 is stalled in the House and S. 3122 in the Senate.
Attorneys for property owners believe the Eastwood case is a prime example that recent lawsuits filed under the ADA are nothing short of frivolous , even though the majority of the cases are settled before trial.
“In my experience, in these cases, the more violations that are cited in the complaint, the higher the cost of settling,” said lawyer Robert Kenny, a shareholder at the San Diego law firm of Duckor Spradling & Metzger.
Kenny advocates settling, but says typical cases will cost property owners between $5,000 and $15,000, “and that doesn’t necessarily include their own attorney fees.”
Local activists for the disabled say property owners are only trying to skirt mandatory compliance. The basis of their argument: It’s an issue of civil rights.
“This is a civil rights law and (notification) would require someone to give notice when their civil rights are violated. I don’t agree with that, although if asked I recommend notice in advance of filing suit,” said Louis Frick, an ADA accessibility guideline consultant with the Access Center of San Diego.
– Lawsuits Often Filed Simultaneously
It’s not uncommon for several ADA lawsuits to be filed simultaneously. On Dec. 1, lawsuits for multiple ADA violations were filed against the U.S. Grant Hotel, La Valencia Hotel and The Good Egg restaurant.
The plaintiff’s attorney, Theodore Pinnock of San Diego-based Pinnock & Associates, did not return phone calls.
Joe Duncalfe, manager of the U.S. Grant Hotel, said as of Dec. 6, the hotel had not yet been served notice of the lawsuit.
“I have no idea what it’s for,” he said. “I know we’re in compliance.”
He said the hotel, in his tenure, had never been served notice for violating the ADA.
Brian Savage, co-owner of The Good Egg, said he had not been served with the lawsuit, but denied being in violation of the ADA.
– Disabled Parking Spaces Expanded
Savage did acknowledge the restaurant had been sued “several years ago” regarding the number of disabled parking spaces, but that it was resolved by adding additional disabled spaces.
The La Valencia Hotel did not return calls.
Ironically, those knowledgeable with ADA law believe the same lawsuits defining the battle lines between property owners and activists for the disabled are exactly what has earned the ADA recent respect and notoriety.
“I think that there has been so much litigation in recent months, it is what has brought it to peoples attention,” said ADA consultant Frick. “I mean, it’s finally an issue because people are concerned about lawsuits.”
