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SAWHORSE
Attorney defends ADA letters to local businesses
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
By Adam Jensen and Jason Shueh
Tahoe Daily Tribune
TRUCKEE/LAKE TAHOE — A Carmichael, Calif., attorney who has inundated small businesses in South Lake Tahoe and Truckee with letters requesting they bring buildings in line with access laws for the disabled defended the practice Tuesday.
Dozens of letters from Scott N. Johnson have angered business owners who contend the letters, and subsequent lawsuits, do more to line Johnson's pockets than improve the lives of the disabled.
The attorney has filed hundreds of lawsuits around the state and said his goal is simple — improving access.
“I'm physically disabled. Increases in access matter to me,” Johnson said during a phone interview Tuesday morning.
The attorney, who was paralyzed from the neck down after being struck by a drunk driver in 1981, said he visits the Lake Tahoe area often and has “very personal” reasons for improving disabled access in the region.
“The goal of the letter is to bring the property into compliance,” Johnson said. The letters have already led to a “1,000 percent” increase in accessibility at the South Shore, according to Johnson.
State and federal disability laws have been in place for years and business owners need to be responsible for following them, Johnson said.
Only after a business owner fails to respond to a letter or show progress towards meeting access requirements does he pursue litigation, Johnson said.
Businesses skeptical
But Greg Havorka, president of ACE Mountain Hardware and Sports in Truckee, disagreed.
He described Johnson's practices as “shady” and said his store was sent a letter by Johnson in February 2009 informing them they were out of compliance.
“We sent a certified letter asking specifically what problems he had seen and we never received any communication from him until we were notified that he was going to sue us,” said Havorka.
Methods disputed
David Kelly, the Executive Director of the South Tahoe Chamber of Commerce and Tahoe Area Coordinating Council for the Disabled, said he has received more than 100 phone calls from South Shore business owners who have received letters from Johnson since the start of the summer.
The prospects of lawsuits against small businesses have already created a backlash against the disabled and the enforcement of disability laws, said Kelly, who is also a Polio survivor.
Kelly said the South Shore is a “very hard” place to live for people with disabilities, but called Johnson's tactics “wrong.”
The ADA and California access laws have been critical to improving the lives of the disabled, as well as senior citizens, Kelly said.
“It has made it possible for people to live and work independent of Social Security, welfare and everything else,” Kelly said.
Enforcement methods that channeled money toward making improvements at businesses, rather than spending thousands on settlements and attorney's fees, would be “ideal” Kelly said.
Johnson contends that is exactly what he is doing.
Lawsuits filed by disabled people can include huge requests for compensation because California law allows litigants to pursue damages for each day a business is out of compliance. The law has allowed for “shocking” amounts in some of these cases, Johnson said.
“I have never requested that, and I never will,” Johnson said. “I don't think it's needed.”
Potential profits in the millions
The attorney said increasing access is the goal of his actions, but said they are also his primary source of income.
“There is a profit,” Johnson said. “I am an attorney. Attorneys go to law school. Attorneys make a profit.”
He declined to say how much he makes per settlement or annually, but the potential profits add up quickly.
Catherine Corfee, an ADA access attorney who spoke to South Shore businesses owners this summer, said Johnson typically wants between $4,500 and $12,000 for a settlement.
Johnson has filed suits around the state. Federal Court records show he has been involved in more than 1,400 court actions in the California Eastern District Court alone in since 2004.
The numbers could double-count actions where he is considered both a plaintiff and the attorney, Johnson said, adding he does not keep records of the number of suits he files or the numbers of letters he sends.
Plans critical for businesses
The attorney said the best way for business owners to avoid receiving a letter or becoming involved in a lawsuit is to make strides toward access.
“Be proactive, get a (Certified Access Specialist) inspection,” Johnson said. “Don't do it because I'm asking you to; do it because it's the right thing to do.”
A Certified Access Specialist is someone certified by California to perform inspections for disability access law compliance.
The most important way businesses can avoid a lawsuit is to create a plan for meeting disability laws, Kelly said. Even if the plan takes five years to accomplish, showing progress toward compliance is key to avoiding legal action, Kelly said.
Walker also recommend businesses owners seek an inspection by a certified specialist.
He said much of the heartache he sees from access issues is from people trying to resolve deficiencies on their own.
“ADA is so precise, there's no tolerance for error here,” Walker said.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
By Adam Jensen and Jason Shueh
Tahoe Daily Tribune
TRUCKEE/LAKE TAHOE — A Carmichael, Calif., attorney who has inundated small businesses in South Lake Tahoe and Truckee with letters requesting they bring buildings in line with access laws for the disabled defended the practice Tuesday.
Dozens of letters from Scott N. Johnson have angered business owners who contend the letters, and subsequent lawsuits, do more to line Johnson's pockets than improve the lives of the disabled.
The attorney has filed hundreds of lawsuits around the state and said his goal is simple — improving access.
“I'm physically disabled. Increases in access matter to me,” Johnson said during a phone interview Tuesday morning.
The attorney, who was paralyzed from the neck down after being struck by a drunk driver in 1981, said he visits the Lake Tahoe area often and has “very personal” reasons for improving disabled access in the region.
“The goal of the letter is to bring the property into compliance,” Johnson said. The letters have already led to a “1,000 percent” increase in accessibility at the South Shore, according to Johnson.
State and federal disability laws have been in place for years and business owners need to be responsible for following them, Johnson said.
Only after a business owner fails to respond to a letter or show progress towards meeting access requirements does he pursue litigation, Johnson said.
Businesses skeptical
But Greg Havorka, president of ACE Mountain Hardware and Sports in Truckee, disagreed.
He described Johnson's practices as “shady” and said his store was sent a letter by Johnson in February 2009 informing them they were out of compliance.
“We sent a certified letter asking specifically what problems he had seen and we never received any communication from him until we were notified that he was going to sue us,” said Havorka.
Methods disputed
David Kelly, the Executive Director of the South Tahoe Chamber of Commerce and Tahoe Area Coordinating Council for the Disabled, said he has received more than 100 phone calls from South Shore business owners who have received letters from Johnson since the start of the summer.
The prospects of lawsuits against small businesses have already created a backlash against the disabled and the enforcement of disability laws, said Kelly, who is also a Polio survivor.
Kelly said the South Shore is a “very hard” place to live for people with disabilities, but called Johnson's tactics “wrong.”
The ADA and California access laws have been critical to improving the lives of the disabled, as well as senior citizens, Kelly said.
“It has made it possible for people to live and work independent of Social Security, welfare and everything else,” Kelly said.
Enforcement methods that channeled money toward making improvements at businesses, rather than spending thousands on settlements and attorney's fees, would be “ideal” Kelly said.
Johnson contends that is exactly what he is doing.
Lawsuits filed by disabled people can include huge requests for compensation because California law allows litigants to pursue damages for each day a business is out of compliance. The law has allowed for “shocking” amounts in some of these cases, Johnson said.
“I have never requested that, and I never will,” Johnson said. “I don't think it's needed.”
Potential profits in the millions
The attorney said increasing access is the goal of his actions, but said they are also his primary source of income.
“There is a profit,” Johnson said. “I am an attorney. Attorneys go to law school. Attorneys make a profit.”
He declined to say how much he makes per settlement or annually, but the potential profits add up quickly.
Catherine Corfee, an ADA access attorney who spoke to South Shore businesses owners this summer, said Johnson typically wants between $4,500 and $12,000 for a settlement.
Johnson has filed suits around the state. Federal Court records show he has been involved in more than 1,400 court actions in the California Eastern District Court alone in since 2004.
The numbers could double-count actions where he is considered both a plaintiff and the attorney, Johnson said, adding he does not keep records of the number of suits he files or the numbers of letters he sends.
Plans critical for businesses
The attorney said the best way for business owners to avoid receiving a letter or becoming involved in a lawsuit is to make strides toward access.
“Be proactive, get a (Certified Access Specialist) inspection,” Johnson said. “Don't do it because I'm asking you to; do it because it's the right thing to do.”
A Certified Access Specialist is someone certified by California to perform inspections for disability access law compliance.
The most important way businesses can avoid a lawsuit is to create a plan for meeting disability laws, Kelly said. Even if the plan takes five years to accomplish, showing progress toward compliance is key to avoiding legal action, Kelly said.
Walker also recommend businesses owners seek an inspection by a certified specialist.
He said much of the heartache he sees from access issues is from people trying to resolve deficiencies on their own.
“ADA is so precise, there's no tolerance for error here,” Walker said.