Economist - Signed into law in 1990, the [American Disabilities Act] bars firms from discriminating against people with disabilities, whether they are employees or customers. Banks, shops, hotels and other “public accommodations” must remove barriers to the “full and equal enjoyment” of their goods and services. This guarantee may sound vague, but new technical standards from the Department of Justice, which went into effect in 2012, dictate everything from the slope of a ramp to the height of a bathroom basin.
The regulations are well-meaning but confusing. The government enforces some of them, but mostly leaves it to people with disabilities to sue. Plaintiffs need not be customers, an appeals court decreed in 2013. And if they win, the defendant must pay their costs.
This has created a cottage industry of so-called Title III lawsuits against bars, motels and the like. More than 4,430 reached federal courts in 2014—a 63% rise in one year, according to new data from Seyfarth Shaw, a law firm that defends businesses against ADA claims. Many more cases rattle around state courts; most end in a confidential settlement. The lion’s share took place in California (where plaintiffs can sue for damages, too) and Florida (which has a high concentration both of lawyers and of frail elderly residents). The law’s new standards, which include requirements for pools, help to explain some of this rise. More lawsuits may soon be on the way, as the Justice Department is expected to apply new ADA rules to websites in June. For example, each picture must have text describing it, so that screen-reader programs can tell blind people what is there.
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