Inclusion Daily Express -- Appeals Court Says 'The Sheriff' Must Get New ADA Trial

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Appeals Court Says 'The Sheriff' Must Get New ADA Trial
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
March 28, 2007

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA--The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled unanimously that a lower court should have awarded damages to a disability rights advocate who has sued several hundred California businesses for violating accessibility laws.

The three-judge panel said last Friday that Jarek Molski, who has dubbed himself "The Sheriff" for enforcing the Americans with Disabilities Act, was wronged when his accessibility lawsuit against Cable's Restaurant in Woodland Hills was thrown out.

Molski, who uses a wheelchair, alleged that during a 2003 visit to the restaurant, he found the door to the restroom was too heavy, the stall was too narrow, the stalls did not have properly installed grab bars, and there was no insulation to cover pipes under the sink to keep him from being burned by hot pipes.

Cable's attorneys had convinced the trial jury that Molski, whose only source of income was damages from ADA lawsuits, was a "business" and not an "individual".

The appeals court said that not only was this not true, it had nothing to do with what the jury was asked to decide -- whether Cable's had violated the ADA. The court noted that Cable's attorneys presented no evidence to the jury to prove that the restaurant had followed the law. In fact, one Cable's executive testified that they had not tried to identify and correct barriers to accessibility.

The appeals court ordered a new trial and for Cable's to pay Molski's costs.

"The pendulum is swinging back in favor of the disabled community," Molski's lawyer, Thomas Frankovich, told Law.com.

In December 2004, a federal judge called Molski a "vexatious litigant" for filing more than 350 discrimination suits "maliciously and without good cause", to win out-of-court settlements and fees of up to $4,000 as allowed under California law. The judge then ordered Molski to stop filing ADA lawsuits without first getting permission from a judge.

Related:
"9th Circuit: Suit-Happy Past Doesn't Hobble Plaintiff's ADA Case" (Law.com)
http://www.law.com/jsp/law/LawArticleFriendly.jsp?id=1174912590832
"Court Gives Man Second Chance in ADA Suit Against Restaurant" (Metropolitan News)
http://www.metnews.com/articles/2007/mols032607.htm

Copyright © 2007 Inonit Publishing
Please do not reprint, forward, or post without permission.

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