McDonald’s Customer Fights To Preserve Drive-Thru Class Action

A McDonald’s customer is fighting a bid by the fast food chain to dismiss his class action lawsuit over claims that the company’s policy of only providing drive-thru services late at night violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.

McDonald’s USA LLC had requested that an Illinois federal court grant summary judgment in their favor, arguing that the customer took issue with franchises not operated by the corporation.

Plaintiff Scott Magee called this argument an effort to downplay “the essence of its franchise agreements.” He went on to accuse McDonald’s USA of “misconstruing the standard which governs operator liability under the ADA.”

Magee argued that the McDonald’s class action lawsuit should move forward because the issue of whether or not McDonald’s USA is an operator of its franchises is a material dispute that should be determined in court.

The McDonald’s class action lawsuit filed in May 2016 claimed that some of the fast food chain’s locations are not fully accessible to the blind because late at night, only their drive-thru services are open, not the restaurants themselves.

Magee is legally blind, and seeks damages on behalf of himself and all similarly affected, visually impaired McDonald’s customers. He urged the court “to put an end to systemic civil rights violations committed by McDonald’s against blind persons in the United States.”

Magee says that he visited multiple McDonald’s locations late at night and attempted to enter the restaurant, but was unable to because the doors were locked. He further claims that he attempted to walk through the drive-thru but was refused service.

He says that McDonald’s policy to lock the restaurant doors and only serve via the drive-thru late at night discriminates against visually impaired customers because they either have to pay for a taxi to go through the drive thru, or cannot access McDonald’s late at night like sighted customers.

In February 2017, a federal judge ruled that Magee could proceed with his class action lawsuit against the two McDonald’s restaurants in his hometown.

In addition U.S. District Judge Joan Gottschall stated in February 2017 that “having found that Magee has standing as to the McDonald’s restaurant near his home in Metairie, Louisiana, the court defers until the class certification stage the question of whether Magee can represent a nationwide class regarding restaurants as to which he lacks individual standing.”

Magee is represented by Roberto Luis Costales and William H. Beaumont of Costales Law Office.

The McDonald’s Drive-Thru Accessibility Class Action Lawsuit is Scott Magee v. McDonald’s Corp. and McDonald’s USA LLC, Case No. 1:16-cv-05652, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

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