Bill Proposed To Curb ADA Suits

FOXNews.com

Thursday, September 6, 2001

FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla.  --  The Americans with Disabilities Act was intended to provide people with disabilities equal access, but some legislators now say the law has provided the most opportunity for lawyers looking to make some easy money through frivolous law suits.

Passed in 1990, the ADA was considered a landmark piece of legislation that recognized the civil rights of people with disabilities by requiring public places and businesses to be accessible. But the law appears to have been exploited by crafty attorneys who can make a quick buck by filing ADA non-compliance suits against small businesses, critics say.

The suits require the business owners to bring their building up to code and to pay the plaintiff's legal fees. In Florida, California, Oregon and Hawaii, the proliferation of suits against liquor stores, strip clubs and pawn shops has spawned a legal cottage industry, according to some lawmakers.

Billy Kourkoumeils, owner of the Peter Pan Diner & Lounge in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., said he was never given the chance to bring his restaurant up to code before being slapped with a suit.

"The first notice was that we were in violation of the code, and a lawsuit was filed against us the same day," Kourkomeils said.

The repairs required to bring the building up to code -- moving some signs and a toilet -- cost Kourkomeils just $1,500. But he had to pay $3,500 -- more than twice the amount of the repairs -- to the lawyer who sued him.

"I consider this legal extortion," Kourkomeils said.

Cases like his, however, have caught the attention of Rep. Mark Foley, R-Fla., who is sponsoring legislation that would give business owners 90 days to make ADA repairs before legal action would be taken against them. He called the attorneys suing strip clubs for ADA non-compliance "bottom feeders."

"We found that time and time again that these people don't care if it's fixed. They never cared if it worked," said Foley. "All they wanted was legal fees and if they get their fee they're out of your way and out of your hair," he said.

South Florida attorney William Tucker has filed more than 200 ADA law suits, and says lawsuits are the only way to get small businesses to comply with the ADA.

"We have in the past written letters and those letters have gotten a zero response rate," Tucker said. "So maybe if a notice provision were included in the law, that might help. But I doubt it," he said.

But other attorneys, and even some disabled people, say the suits against pawn shops and strip clubs is hurting the cause of accessibility and giving the ADA a bad name.

For small business owners, the 90-day grace period seems a sensible solution, but it may not be a likely one. A similar bill failed to pass last year.

Fox News' Orlando Salinas contributed to this report.

Original source:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,33826,00.html