Interesting Facts About ADA Claims

The cost of incorporating accessibility features in new construction is generally less than one percent of construction costs.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (P.L. 101-336) which was signed into law on July 26, 1990 -- is the most comprehensive civil rights legislation to protect disabled persons. The Public Accommodations provision (Title lll) became a part of it on January 26, 1992.

Under ADA Title lll, there is a long and extremely detailed list of handicap accessible requirements for all places of public access. For example, each business which provides patron parking must reserve a certain number of parking spaces for disabled persons. Each of these spaces must be at least 96 inches wide and they must be accompanied by a sign that cannot be obscured when a vehicle is parked in the space. There must also be a ramp – which cannot exceed an 8.3 percent slope -- from the parking lot to the store entrance. If the door entrance to the store has a door closer, it must take at least three seconds for the door to close, etc. Each deviation from the exact specified number or percentage requirements is considered a violation, whether intentional or not.

California, Florida and Hawaii have significant numbers of ADA Title III lawsuits. In California alone, over 400 Title lll discrimination lawsuits were filed within a 2-3 year period in an attempt to force business owners to comply.

Buildings such as courthouses, jails, hospitals, parks, post offices, etc., -- which are owned and operated by state and local government -- cannot discriminate against persons with disabilities.

The Department of Justice, which handles complaints of disability discrimination based in places of public accommodation, can be contacted in the following way:

U.S. Department of Justice
Civil Rights Division; Disability Rights Section
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530
Phone: (800) 514-0301 or (202) 307-2227
TTY: (800) 514-0383
Fax: (202) 307-1198