A test case of another kind for the Supreme Court: Who can sue hotels over disability access
The Supreme Court is taking up a case that could make it harder to sue hotels when their websites are not clear enough about their accommodations for people with disabilities
WASHINGTON — A few years back, Joseph Stramondo was a last-minute replacement as a conference speaker in Salt Lake City. He went online and made a reservation for a room accessible for people with disabilities.
“I figured, ‘OK, I should be set,’” Stramondo said.
But when he checked in, the room he was given looked like a standard room, without bars in the bathroom or a door wide enough to accommodate his wheelchair.
Returning to the front desk, Stramondo learned the room was accessible — for people with hearing loss.
The Supreme Court is taking up a case Wednesday that Stramondo, his wife, Leah Smith, and other people with disabilities worry could make it harder to learn in advance what accommodations are available that meet their needs.
The justices are being asked to limit the ability of so-called testers to file lawsuits against hotels that fail to disclose accessibility information on their websites and through other reservation services.
The information is required by a 2010 Justice Department rule. People who suffer discrimination can sue under the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act, signed into law in 1990.
The issue in the Supreme Court case is whether Deborah Laufer, a woman with disabilities, has the right to sue a hotel in Maine that lacked the accessibility information on its website, despite having no plans to visit it. Laufer, who would not agree to an interview for this story, has filed some 600 similar lawsuits.
A district court dismissed her complaint, but the federal appeals court in Boston revived it. Appeals courts around
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