mark handler
SAWHORSE
Why an Arizona woman sued more than 30 hotels where she hadn’t stayed
http://www.desertsun.com/story/mone...an-30-hotels-where-she-hadnt-stayed/86875122/
The Aloha Hotel in Palm Springs does not have a pool lift, a device to help disabled guests into the swimming pool.
Neither do a number of hotels across the Coachella Valley.
This is why 35 hotels – ranging from small properties of a few rooms like the Aloha to large resorts like the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort – are facing Americans with Disabilities Act lawsuits claiming the properties are out of compliance with the landmark 1990 federal law that has helped to create public spaces, which are infinitely more accessible for the disabled now than decades ago.
Installing the lift, said Monalinda Verlengia, front desk agent at the Aloha, would require “major construction,” and result in a hardship for her small hotel, which was built in 1947. The electric upgrades and other infrastructure needed would soar well north of $30,000, she added.
“It’s a lot of red tape for one person that wants to spend $50 to get in the pool,” Verlengia said.
The lawsuit against the Aloha and the other 34 hotels was filed by Theresa Brooke, a disabled Arizona woman. Each lawsuit -- filed in April and May -- makes the same claim: the hotel lacks the proper pool lift. Each lawsuit requests that the hotels take the same set corrective measures to install one, as well as pay $8,500 in damages, plus legal fees to Brooke.
Read more Palm Springs area city news
Verlengia's attorney has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit. If that's not granted it's not entirely clear if she plans to take the issue to court, as the two sides have been involved in settlement negotiations according to emails Verlengia shared with The Desert Sun.
Verlengia maintains Brooke was not denied access to the Aloha’s pool, if only because she never stayed at the hotel. Peter Strojnik, Brooke’s attorney, claimed Brooke visited the hotel, "encountered the barrier," and decided not to stay, according to a June 30 email Strojnik sent to Jane A. Rheinheimer, Verlengia's attorney.
In this lawsuit, like most others, Brooke called the hotel to ask if a pool lift was available for each pool and Jacuzzi spa, according to the lawsuits. If the hotel official said one was not available, a representative for Brooke was dispatched to the hotel to verify the absence of the lift.
“The reason for ramps and lifts is because of people like my client suing businesses who put the dollar ahead of providing equal access,” wrote Strojnik, in an email. Strojnik did not agree to an interview, though noted a pool lift cost about $2,000. That fee does not include the cost of installation.
In the last week, Brooke has filed another 26 ADA lawsuits in the Riverside and Pasadena areas on the same issue.
Theresa Brooke, a disabled Arizona woman, has filed 35 lawsuits against hotels up and down the Coachella Valley alleging they lack the proper pool lifts to assist disabled guests into the water.
Officials with the hotel industry say ADA lawsuits like those filed by Brooke in the Coachella Valley amount to “extortion” enabled by unscrupulous lawyers.
“It’s not an illegal racket. But it’s a form of legal extortion, in the legal sense,” said Jim Abrams, former president and CEO of the California Hotel & Lodging Association, who now serves as legal adviser for the California Association of Boutique and Breakfast Inns.
“This is an epidemic, in California, and in many, many cases all claimants want is some quick money -- $4,000, $5,000, $10,000 – and don’t really ever care if anything’s ever made accessible,” he added.
Requiring that the business is made accessible is part of the settlement, Abrams said.
“But the person that files the lawsuit never goes back and checks, and doesn’t really care,” he said.
Brooke has filed more than 180 ADA lawsuits in California federal courts since August of last year. Most of those – 123 – were in the Central District, which includes the Coachella Valley. Brooke has also filed more than 150 ADA lawsuits in federal courts in Arizona.
Strojnik would not say if he or Brooke followed up with hotels to ensure compliance with the law. For this, and other questions, he said, “that’s confidential.”
“Epidemic” is not how disability advocates describe the ADA legal climate in California. Of the 3.3 million small businesses in the state the California Commission on Disability Access’ data reports that from January 2014 to January 2015 only 3,468 demand letters and complaints were filed. This means only 0.1 percent of businesses are sued about disability access. And out of the more than 3.7 million Californians with disabilities, only 391 people with disabilities, or .01 percent, filed access claims from January 2014 to January 2015, according to Disability Rights California, an advocacy group.
“Using the law, in that way, is an enforcement mechanism,” said Evelyn Abouhassan, senior legislative advocate for Disability Rights California, and who has worked on a lot of ADA-related legislation in Sacramento. Abouhassan spoke in defense of Brooke's lawsuits, though she was careful not to comment on any specific case.
“There is no other way to really ensure that businesses come into compliance,” she added. “And our experience has been that businesses have no incentive, other than – they take a wait-and-see approach – and then when they get sued is when they fix the access issues.”
And indeed, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has written that “serial litigation” may be necessary in “advancing the time when public accommodations will be compliant with the ADA,” in the case Molski v. Evergreen Dynasty Corp.
Continued below
http://www.desertsun.com/story/mone...an-30-hotels-where-she-hadnt-stayed/86875122/
The Aloha Hotel in Palm Springs does not have a pool lift, a device to help disabled guests into the swimming pool.
Neither do a number of hotels across the Coachella Valley.
This is why 35 hotels – ranging from small properties of a few rooms like the Aloha to large resorts like the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort – are facing Americans with Disabilities Act lawsuits claiming the properties are out of compliance with the landmark 1990 federal law that has helped to create public spaces, which are infinitely more accessible for the disabled now than decades ago.
Installing the lift, said Monalinda Verlengia, front desk agent at the Aloha, would require “major construction,” and result in a hardship for her small hotel, which was built in 1947. The electric upgrades and other infrastructure needed would soar well north of $30,000, she added.
“It’s a lot of red tape for one person that wants to spend $50 to get in the pool,” Verlengia said.
The lawsuit against the Aloha and the other 34 hotels was filed by Theresa Brooke, a disabled Arizona woman. Each lawsuit -- filed in April and May -- makes the same claim: the hotel lacks the proper pool lift. Each lawsuit requests that the hotels take the same set corrective measures to install one, as well as pay $8,500 in damages, plus legal fees to Brooke.
Read more Palm Springs area city news
Verlengia's attorney has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit. If that's not granted it's not entirely clear if she plans to take the issue to court, as the two sides have been involved in settlement negotiations according to emails Verlengia shared with The Desert Sun.
Verlengia maintains Brooke was not denied access to the Aloha’s pool, if only because she never stayed at the hotel. Peter Strojnik, Brooke’s attorney, claimed Brooke visited the hotel, "encountered the barrier," and decided not to stay, according to a June 30 email Strojnik sent to Jane A. Rheinheimer, Verlengia's attorney.
In this lawsuit, like most others, Brooke called the hotel to ask if a pool lift was available for each pool and Jacuzzi spa, according to the lawsuits. If the hotel official said one was not available, a representative for Brooke was dispatched to the hotel to verify the absence of the lift.
“The reason for ramps and lifts is because of people like my client suing businesses who put the dollar ahead of providing equal access,” wrote Strojnik, in an email. Strojnik did not agree to an interview, though noted a pool lift cost about $2,000. That fee does not include the cost of installation.
In the last week, Brooke has filed another 26 ADA lawsuits in the Riverside and Pasadena areas on the same issue.
Theresa Brooke, a disabled Arizona woman, has filed 35 lawsuits against hotels up and down the Coachella Valley alleging they lack the proper pool lifts to assist disabled guests into the water.
Officials with the hotel industry say ADA lawsuits like those filed by Brooke in the Coachella Valley amount to “extortion” enabled by unscrupulous lawyers.
“It’s not an illegal racket. But it’s a form of legal extortion, in the legal sense,” said Jim Abrams, former president and CEO of the California Hotel & Lodging Association, who now serves as legal adviser for the California Association of Boutique and Breakfast Inns.
“This is an epidemic, in California, and in many, many cases all claimants want is some quick money -- $4,000, $5,000, $10,000 – and don’t really ever care if anything’s ever made accessible,” he added.
Requiring that the business is made accessible is part of the settlement, Abrams said.
“But the person that files the lawsuit never goes back and checks, and doesn’t really care,” he said.
Brooke has filed more than 180 ADA lawsuits in California federal courts since August of last year. Most of those – 123 – were in the Central District, which includes the Coachella Valley. Brooke has also filed more than 150 ADA lawsuits in federal courts in Arizona.
Strojnik would not say if he or Brooke followed up with hotels to ensure compliance with the law. For this, and other questions, he said, “that’s confidential.”
“Epidemic” is not how disability advocates describe the ADA legal climate in California. Of the 3.3 million small businesses in the state the California Commission on Disability Access’ data reports that from January 2014 to January 2015 only 3,468 demand letters and complaints were filed. This means only 0.1 percent of businesses are sued about disability access. And out of the more than 3.7 million Californians with disabilities, only 391 people with disabilities, or .01 percent, filed access claims from January 2014 to January 2015, according to Disability Rights California, an advocacy group.
“Using the law, in that way, is an enforcement mechanism,” said Evelyn Abouhassan, senior legislative advocate for Disability Rights California, and who has worked on a lot of ADA-related legislation in Sacramento. Abouhassan spoke in defense of Brooke's lawsuits, though she was careful not to comment on any specific case.
“There is no other way to really ensure that businesses come into compliance,” she added. “And our experience has been that businesses have no incentive, other than – they take a wait-and-see approach – and then when they get sued is when they fix the access issues.”
And indeed, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has written that “serial litigation” may be necessary in “advancing the time when public accommodations will be compliant with the ADA,” in the case Molski v. Evergreen Dynasty Corp.
Continued below
