SB 585: Disability access: construction-related accessibility claims: statutory damages: attorney’s fees and costs.

Existing law prohibits discrimination on the basis of various specified personal characteristics, including disability. Existing law imposes minimum statutory damages for construction-related accessibility claims if the violation of a construction-related accessibility standard denied the plaintiff full and equal access to the place of public accommodation on a particular occasion, including by causing difficulty, discomfort, or embarrassment. Existing law, for claims filed on or after a specified date, presumes that certain technical violations do not cause a person difficulty, discomfort, or embarrassment for these purposes if specified criteria are satisfied. Existing law limits a defendants liability for statutory damages under specified conditions, including if a defendant corrects the construction-related violations within a specified time.

This bill would prohibit a construction-related accessibility claim for statutory damages from being initiated in a legal proceeding against a defendant who employs 50 or fewer individuals, as specified, until the defendant has been served with a demand letter specifying each alleged violation of a construction-related accessibility standard and given 120 days to correct the alleged violation. The bill would provide that a defendant is not liable for statutory damages, plaintiffs attorneys fees, or costs for an alleged violation that is corrected within 120 days of service of a demand letter alleging the violation. The bill would also prohibit a plaintiff from avoiding the notice and opportunity to correct provisions and the liability limitations by claiming they are seeking general discrimination damages based on a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 if the underlying claim is based on a defendants failure to comply with physical accessibility standards under California law.