Seyfarth Synopsis: The ADA Title III team makes a 3-part video series containing 30 tips for businesses on how to better serve individuals with disabilities.

July 26, 2020, is the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act.  To mark this important occasion, attorneys from Seyfarth’s ADA Title III Team put on their best work-from-home shelter-in-place attire to create a
Continue Reading ADA 30: 30 Tips for 30 Years – Seyfarth Marks the ADA’s Anniversary with a 3-Part Video Series

By John W. Egan

Seyfarth Synopsis: Businesses are defending record numbers of ADA Title III cases every year.  A recent decision in New York underscores the challenges business face when ADA plaintiffs are more interested in protracted litigation than settlement. 

The number of ADA Title III lawsuits filed annually has increased more than 300 percent in the last five years. 
Continue Reading New York Judge Criticizes Plaintiff’s ADA Firm For Refusing to Discuss Early Settlement and Engaging in Fee-Churning Litigation Tactics

Seyfarth Synopsis: In yet another effort to limit predatory ADA lawsuits, California Governor Jerry Brown recently signed into law – effective immediately – legislation that will provide small business owners with some potential relief.

Another year, another attempt in California to reform disability access laws – which presently offer plaintiffs a $4,000 per violation bounty for suing businesses.  But this
Continue Reading Latest California ADA Lawsuit Reform Attempt: “Watered Down Solution”

Seyfarth Synopsis:  In a refreshing breath of fresh air, a federal judge holds that an intent to return as a “tester” does not give a plaintiff standing to sue under Title III of the ADA.

gavelAs we’ve reported before, the number of ADA Title III lawsuits has surged in the past few years, mostly in part due to
Continue Reading Only a Bona Fide Patron of A Business Can Bring an ADA Suit, Maryland Court Holds

Our research department has crunched the numbers from the federal court docket and the verdict is that the ADA Title III plaintiff’s bar and their clients are still busy filing lawsuits.  Here are the findings:

  • In 2015, 4,789 ADA Title III lawsuits were filed in federal court, as compared to 4,436 in 2014.  That 8% increase is modest compared to


Continue Reading ADA Title III Lawsuits Continue to Rise: 8% Increase in 2015

We’ve done the review and crunched the numbers:  It appears that the surge of ADA Title III lawsuits we saw from 2013 to 2014 is holding strong, though possibly leveling off.

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You may recall that there was a 60% increase in the number of ADA Title III lawsuits between 2013 and 2014 (2479 vs. 4436).  In the first six months
Continue Reading ADA Title III Lawsuit Numbers Hold Steady for First Half of 2015

By Minh N. Vu and Susan Ryan

In August 2014, we reported that the number of ADA Title III lawsuits filed against public accommodations rose by nearly 9% in 2013 over 2012. At that time, we predicted that there could be a 40% increase in the number of lawsuits filed in 2014 based on 6 months of data. Now that
Continue Reading ADA Title III Lawsuits Surge by More than 63%, to Over 4400, In 2014

By Craig B. Simonsen and Kristina M. Launey

This blog, as the “ADA Title III” name indicates, is primarily about a business’s obligation to individuals with disabilities who may access its goods, services, benefits, and accommodations, rather than employees with disabilities.  However, we also frequently receive questions from entities that are subject to Title III about their obligations to provide
Continue Reading Office of Disability Employment Policy Publishes Web Portal on Accessible Workplace Technology

By Andrew C. Crane

On January 28, 2014, in Martinez v. Columbia Sportswear USA Corp., the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for our three retail defendants, holding for the first time that a 60-inch long dressing room bench constitutes an “equivalent facilitation” under the 1991 ADA Standards, which specify that benches must
Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment for Retail Store Defendants

By Minh. N. Vu

If you thought that Title III of the ADA was intended to protect people with disabilities who might want to do business with you – as opposed to those people who visit your business for the sole purpose of filing a lawsuit –– think again.  The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit last week
Continue Reading Eleventh Circuit Holds that Testers Who Have No Intent to do Business at a Place of Public Accommodation Can File ADA Title III Lawsuits.