Law Office of Rick Morin, PC

My phone has been ringing off the hook after 60 Minutes profiled ADA lawsuit abuse on Sunday. The program chronicled the trouble that drive-by ADA lawsuits are causing nationwide, with a special focus on Florida and California.

You can view the whole program here. It is worth a watch.

60 Minutes covered several important aspects of ADA lawsuit abuse, including the outrageous amounts of money that professional ADA plaintiffs are able to make by targeting small businesses. I am impressed that this issue is now receiving the natioanl attention that it deserves.

Tanya Moore is involved – of course she is!

No profile of ADA lawsuit abuse would be complete without looking into the practices of prolific ADA lawyer Tanya Moore.

60 Minutes uncovers Tanya Moore’s efforts to recruit plaintiffs to file these lawsuits. This is very troubling. Most law firms are contacted by potential clients asking for help. In Tanya Moore’s case, it appears that her law firm actively recruits disabled people to bring these lawsuits.

The math is simple: the more lawsuits Tanya Moore and her attorneys file, the more money they can make through settlements.

60 Minutes also uncovers a very interesting fact: two of Tanya Moore’s prior clients are now suing her firm for fraud, alleging that they did not receive money that was promised to them when they started bringing ADA lawsuits.

When does it end?

I get asked all of the time when I think that these laws will be changed to bring some balance back to disability access litigation. With national attention now focused on California’s disabled access laws, it will be interesting to see if the California Legislature takes any real action.

Past reform efforts, as I have discussed on this blog, have not made a dent to ADA filings. Until real reform is enacted, California business owners will have to factor these ADA lawsuits into their cost of doing business.

If you have been served with an ADA lawsuit or need assistance bringing your business into full ADA compliance, please contact my office for a consultation. I can be reached at (916) 333-2222.