$24M 49ers Football Stadium Class Action Settlement Gets Final Approval

A federal judge in California has approved a $24 million class action settlement in a case that pitted a Class of football fans against the San Francisco 49ers.

The fans had claimed Levi’s Stadium, where the 49ers play, violates the Americans with Disabilities Act by having noncompliant access barriers that prevent some fans from enjoying the football games.

The plaintiffs also alleged that the defendants were in violation of California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act. Class Members making a claim will receive a minimum of $4,000 for each visit to the 49ers football stadium, up to a maximum total amount of $80,000.

In granting approval, U.S. District Judge Lucy H. Koh said the settlement “is fair, reasonable, adequate, and in the best interests of the Plaintiff Classes as a whole,” and deemed it “more than adequate.”

The class action settlement agreement says the 49ers team will furnish accessible drinking fountains, as well as accessible seating and bar space wherever food and drink is consumed or served at the stadium.

Also as part of the settlement, accessible-seating tickets will be made available for purchase online so Class Members will not be required to visit the 49ers football stadium box office in person in order to buy tickets.

The class action lawsuit alleged that when the new 49ers team stadium was constructed in 2012, the defendants neglected to implement ADA-compliant components, which resulted in problems for the plaintiffs and Class Members.

The plaintiffs in the 49ers class action lawsuit had filed their complaint against not only Levi’s Stadium, but also Live Nation, Ticketmaster, the National Football League and the city of Santa Clara, Calif., after they say they were effectively barred from purchasing tickets to games at Levi’s Stadium because they were unable to select accessible seats online.

They say they eventually ended up asking friends who were season ticket holders to change them for wheelchair-accessible seats, which necessitated a trip to the box office, causing them to miss pregame activities.

The plaintiffs in the 49ers football stadium class action lawsuit had also claimed the stadium’s parking lots presented issues for those with mobility disabilities. They alleged there weren’t a sufficient number of accessible parking spots next to the stadium, causing Class Members to park off-site.

In their motion for preliminary approval of the settlement, the plaintiffs noted the defendants were making several access improvements at the 49ers football stadium.

“As a result of this access work, Class Members who use wheelchairs will no longer roll around in their seating spaces because of the excessive drainage gradient that was erroneously constructed,” the motion for preliminary approval stated.

The cases against Live Nation and Ticketmaster were sent to arbitration.

Judge Koh also dismissed the class action lawsuit’s claims against the city.

The Court certified three subclasses, according to court documents.

The Injunctive Relief Class includes anyone with mobility disabilities who uses a scooter, wheelchair or other aid who tried to purchase accessible seating for a public event at the 49ers stadium and was denied equal access to stadium facilities between Dec. 7, 2013, and the settlement’s preliminary approval date.

The Companion Injunctive Relief Class includes those using companion seats at the 49ers football stadium while attending public events with people with mobility disabilities who use mobility aids during the same period.

The Damages Class includes anyone with mobility disabilities who uses a mobility aid and who “have purchased, attempted to purchase, or for whom third parties purchased accessible seating and who have been denied equal access to Levi’s Stadium’s facilities, services, accessible seating, parking, amenities, and privileges at an event controlled by the Forty Niners Football Company, LLC; Forty Niners SC Stadium Company, LLC; or Forty Niners Stadium Management Company, LLC” between April 13, 2015, through the settlement’s preliminary approval date.

The settlement also provides for a $24 million “nonreversionary damages fund,” which the plaintiffs claim is the largest “ever achieved in a case alleging claims under the public facilities and accommodations provisions of the ADA.”

Have you experienced ADA compliance issues at sporting events? Tell us about it in the comments.

The plaintiffs were represented by Guy B. Wallace and Mark T. Johnson of Schneider Wallace Cottrell Konecky Wotkyns LLP, Linda M. Dardarian and Andrew P. Lee of Goldstein Borgen Dardarian & Ho, and Adam B. Wolf and Catherine Cabalo of Peiffer Wolf Carr & Kane.

The San Francisco 49ers Football Stadium Class Action Lawsuit is Abdul Nevarez, et al. v. Forty Niners Football Co. LLC, et al., Case No. 5:16-cv-07013, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:

Giant Eagle Grocery Store Lawsuit Says Face Mask Policy Violates ADA

Container Store May Win ADA Suit After Updating Checkout Devices

Exxon and PBF Energy Reach $4.4M California Wage and Hour Settlement

What Does the California Coalition Against Sexual Assault Do?