Retail
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Is it the lawyer, the judge or the law? – more ADA contradictions and confusion
Three recent cases from District Courts in California show just how hard it can be to predict what will happen in an ADA case, at least in the early stages. The facts are essentially identical, but the results are diametrically opposed. Is it because the judges have different views of the law? Is it because the… Continue reading
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ADA Policies – You’ve got to walk the walk part II
On March 5, 2015 the Ninth Circuit issued an opinion in one of the longest running ADA lawsuits around. Chapman v. Pier 1 Imports (U.S.) Inc., 2015 WL 925586 (9th Cir. Mar. 5, 2015). Like the Home Depot case I wrote about a few weeks ago the issue in Chapman v. Pier 1 concerned obstructions that blocked access and… Continue reading
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What is an ADA injury, anyway?
This inspiring picture of a para-athlete should remind us all of what those with “disabilities” as defined by the law can achieve. It should also make the courts consider whether they have mis-construed the law concerning injury under the ADA. I’ve written many times before about the troubling tendency of some courts to ignore the… Continue reading
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ADA compliance – half right is all wrong
Two realities dominate the world of ADA compliance and defense. First, the ADA is a no-fault statute: good intentions don’t matter and innocence is no defense. Second, even when barrier removal is impossible, a business still has an obligation to try to become accessible. Two recent cases show how the failure to remember this can… Continue reading
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Reasonable accommodation under the ADA – what would you do for your mother?
I wrote last week about the difficulty in determining just what the ADA requires in cases concerning physical accessibility. A recent decision from California shows how hard it can be to know what the “reasonable accommodation” provisions of the ADA require. For businesses who want to comply with the ADA and want to avoid litigation… Continue reading