February 6, 2017:
The Law Offices of Joshua N. Garick, P.C. defendant a client who was sued by a Florida attorney in a lawsuit known as a “drive-by ADA lawsuit.”
Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) allows a disabled customer to sue a business if there are barriers preventing him from accessing a business. For example, if a business did not have any handicapped parking spaces, a disabled individual could sue so that the business could add the required spaces. The law has laudable goals; business owners should want their disabled customers to be able to access their businesses. However, as explained on a recent segment of 60 minutes (VIEWED HERE), there has been abuse. The law does not award financial damages to the plaintiff. All the plaintiff can recover is his attorney’s fees. An abusive “drive-by ADA lawsuit” therefore, is one where the plaintiff’s claims are driven by an attorney merely to settle for attorneys’ fees, not to encourage compliance with the ADA or bring about constructive change to a non-compliant facility.
Todd Shulby is a Florida attorney who has filed nearly two thousands lawsuits throughout the country and nearly 100 cases in Massachusetts alone. According to court documents, each of the lawsuits filed by Todd Shulby are nearly identical. They are brought by a plaintiff who describes himself as a “tester,” not as a customer. The list of alleged ADA violations are typically minor, or non-existent. Shulby and his nominal plaintiff never send a demand letter to the business asking for compliance, but instead file lawsuits right away with the goal of coercing settlement in the $6,000 to $8,000 range.
The Law Offices of Joshua N. Garick, P.C. is experienced in ADA litigation. We file cases every year against employers and landlords who engage in disability-based discrimination. The drive-by ADA lawsuit, however, present an affront to legitimate cases of disability discrimination. If your business has been sued, please CONTACT US to discuss your legal options. We have experience litigating cases against the most abusive attorneys in the country that have exploited well-intended laws for their own financial benefit.
