Starbucks ADA Lawsuit on Chopping Block Again

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Plaintiffs involved in a nearly 4-year-long legal battle with Starbucks over alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act asked a federal judge Monday to ignore a recent filing by the coffee giant, saying it is a ploy to “once again delay” the case and a final resolution.

The Starbucks ADA lawsuit (Timothy Vondersaar v. Starbucks Corp.) is centered on allegations that stores built in California before 2005 do not adequately accommodate patrons in scooters and wheelchairs under the Americans with Disabilities Act and California state law. More specifically, the Starbucks lawsuit alleges that the counters are too high for patrons who need wheelchairs and other mobility assistance to reach their food and drink purchases. The case was filed in 2012.

According plaintiff allegations filed on July 18, Starbucks filed a motion to dismiss claims under California law, sending these claims back to a state court. The plaintiffs assert that Starbucks only filed the motion after a meeting with their council on the subject of filing a motion for summary judgment on state claims, which could wrap up part of the ADA lawsuit. Instead, plaintiffs allege, Starbucks has resorted to delay tactics.

The plaintiffs argue that if the court acted on the defendant’s motion, it could lead to expensive duplication, where many of the same issues will be tried in a different court. The plaintiffs cited a 1994 Ninth Circuit Court Decision that ruled it would be easiest to just proceed with the case in the current federal court.

The Starbucks ADA lawsuit has already been dogged for years by delays. Motions to receive class certification have fallen flat. Additionally, the courts have already dismissed motions that would have parsed it out that not all Starbucks allegedly fail to meet requirements under California and Federal law, but only stores built before 2005. After this date, Starbucks altered their counter design to meet the minimum 36-inch ADA-mandated height for wheelchair accessibility. The entire case was moved to a federal court in June of 2012.

The initial Starbucks ADA lawsuit was brought by a group of plaintiffs who sued Starbucks over allegations that their countertops were far too high for people in wheelchairs to reach their drinks. The initial plaintiffs included Timothy Vondersaar, Orlandis Hardy Jr, Jaarome Wilson, and Bernard Taruc. The ADA and California laws require that companies make reasonable accommodations for Americans with disabilities, including hand-off counters no higher than 36 inches. The Starbucks lawsuit holds that at least 50 of the 1,000-plus Starbucks stores in California violate these rules.

Though the case has been denied class certification, similar ADA lawsuits could be filed by anyone in a wheelchair or scooter who ran into problems with counters higher than 3 feet at California Starbucks stores. Again, at present the case is in the form of a joint ADA lawsuit between four plaintiffs, not a true class action lawsuit.

The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Miguel A. Custodio Jr. and Vineet Dubey of Custodio & Dubey LLP, and James K. Kawahito, Alison Y. Rose and Shawn C. Westrick of Kawahito Shraga & Westrick LLP.

The Starbucks ADA Lawsuit is Timothy Vondersaar, et al., v. Starbucks Corporation, et al., Case No. CV12 – 5027 DDP (AJWX), filed in the United States District Court for the Central District of California.