The scum among us…. My opinion
Posted Under: Important Issues for Fort Lauderdale,Neighborhood Issues,Social Issues
The scum among us…. My opinion
In our country, it used to be that if you had the initiative to build a company, offer an honest product or service and provided good customer service, you were able to make a decent living, even become well-off. That was the “American Dream” and was what enabled people to work optimistically toward a better life here.
No more.
Today, more often than not, it is how well connected you are, or how well you can cheat, take advantage of, steal & rob your way to a better life, and do it off the backs of others. We’ve seen too many examples of this nationally; the Madoff scandal & the Wall Street meltdown with investment firms &banks lying to investors are just two examples. Here in South Florida we’ve seen the Rothstein “Ponzi” scheme, the Stanford investment scandal, developers trying to get land rezoned for their own financial benefit, and numerous Broward County elected officials “on the take”.
And now in Fort Lauderdale we have this. A scumbag by the name of (my attorney asked me not to mention his/her name yet) is driving around Fort Lauderdale looking for businesses to sue under the “Americans with Disabilities Act”. A Federal law allows anyone (anyone who is classified as “disabled” that is) the right to sue a business if there is any (no matter how small) element of current ADA non-compliance.
The person doesn’t even have to go in to the business; if they see any violation from the street, they can sue and the business or property owner suddenly finds him or herself on the hook for tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees, having to pay both the plaintiff’s attorney and their own attorney. It’s nothing more than a scam, dreamed up by attorneys, for attorneys (in my opinion).
Currently this “person” has sued 26 businesses in the last 4 months (my business included), claiming “irreparable harm” by not having proper access (never mind that he or she may never have entered the business). I have had numerous people in wheel chairs come to my place of business to shop. No one has ever had a problem getting around. But the way the federal law is written, if your business or property is not up to ALL current ADA standards, or has even minor issues, you can still be sued. There is no warning or time given to correct any issues that are not up to current ADA standards; all you can do is to try to settle with the attorneys involved to minimize the legal fees.
It’s a cottage industry and the winners are the attorneys, both the plaintiffs’ and the defendants’ attorneys. The losers are the small business or property owners who have only two options: try to settle out of court for tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees. Or take it to court and end up having to pay 3-4 times that. And the way the law is written, the chance of being successful in court is very slim. It is simply legal extortion by the Federal Government and the attorneys who wrote the law.
So a small business like mine, along with an appliance store, a carpet store, a clothing store, a bank, bicycle shop, along with several doctors and dentists offices and at least ten other businesses here in Fort Lauderdale have all been sued by the same person, using the same attorney since April. Local judges are upset about these claims, but because of the way the law is written, they too have little flexibility.
We wonder why we are losing our competitive edge in the world. Here’s why. We are too busy trying to cheat and steal from each other…
For those of you who have small businesses here in Fort Lauderdale; be forewarned! Make sure your place of business meets ALL of the current ADA requirements.
Earl Rynerson
Reader Comments
So sorry to hear this, Earl. I hope you are vindicated, without too much time or energy wasted. The ridiculous handicap accessible water fountain that we are forced to have in our business, actually CREATES hazards! The way that it is designed, it constantly spills water on the floor, which then creates a slipping hazard for someone NOT in a wheelchair. And I can’t put a mat under it, or it creates a tripping hazard. I can’t remove it or modify it, because its what the city demands due to code. I would much prefer to have a sleek, reverse-osmosis water dispenser, and when a handicapped person came in, I will GLADLY hand them a glass of water. Not quite sure how it all ended up this crazy. By the way, is that same person responsible for all the new guardrails that are going up along the streets?
earl, you should share who this jerk is.
Matthew:
I’m sure one of our readers will know who it is…
Earl
Remember a judge is a lawyer as well. He/she is part of the problem, because they are all in bed with each other a.k.a. Florida Bar Association. He/she has complete control over what goes on in their courtroom. I feel the judge is too lazy to do the legal paper that would deny this silly lawsuit and let justice prevail. The ADA has good intentions it is just out of control lawyers that are destroying our society.
Dear Earl, sorry to hear about this but as usual “not surprised”. I am an interior designer. I have to take CEU courses every couple of years to keep my Florida Interior Designers License. One of the required courses was on ADA requirements. It’s one more thing to add to our already full plate of do’s and don’ts. One problem I voiced at the seminar was if there are approx. 4 million handicapped people in the US, why are we turning buldings inside out, parking lots and water fountains, toilets, etc. to accommodate just a few by comparison to our national population of 350 million? No answer was given but I did come up with a solution, MAKE THEIR WHEEL CHAIRS FUNCTION IN OUR SOCIETY. We can send a man to the moon, let’s make a wheel chair that conforms. Goes up and down, etc. It is possible and they do sell one….it does exist.
Alright, who is it? Make it a scramble, we can sort it out ourselves!
Make it a game! The winner can sue the guy!
Yes this has happened before and the person or persons started from the top of the state of Florida and worked their way south. We were caught in the web and it cost us lots of money. This must be round #2. They the attorney’s that are doing this should be held to code for their conduct and loose their credentials.
I told the slimeball who sued me that if he ever came in my retaurant again, he’d be the one needing the handicapped space!
Earl,
Didn’t the lawyer who was doing all of the bad America with Disabilities Act lawsuits over the past ten years, become ill? Something bad happened to him??
The ADA was a terrible act. It has costs governments and taxpayers billions of dollars to comply.
It was not needed. Those businesses that wanted business from the good handicap folks could make their place acceptable. Those who do not, should have had a choice.
Earl, This has been done before, I don’t know if it the same guy. But it happened in Oakland Park years ago. One old-time property owner was so distressed by the suit, he had a heart attack and died. I remember reading in National Review, when this crummy legislation passed, that it was going to be a disaster. My Mom was in a wheel chair for the last few years of her life…if we had no access to a place of business…we went someplace else. We all have great empathy for those of us who are disabled in some way…after all we are all just an accident away from the same problems, but as usual, bad legislation just makes everything worse for everyone.
Welcome to beautiful South Florida! The home of scam artists……
I can see ADA applied to new and large area buildings say over 10,000 square feet and multi-story buildings.
For existing buildings,an independent cost-benefit analysis study should be done to see if an ADA rework is justified. Variances could be granted. Alternatives should be investigated.
Unfortunately the creators of this legislation did not factor in the costs and practicability of ADA compliance. JAL
Since 1992 when compliance with the ADA for commercial facilities became required, architects have provided protection from law suites by providing proactive ADA deficiencies surveys and compliance plans and schedules for improvements to become compliant. Many times little work needs to be done based on available funds and scale of other planed improvements. With out the owner having a plan for compliance and an understanding of the owners deficiencies the judges has no choice but to find the owner delinquent in there responsibilities under the law. So architects can get in on this scumbag money as well, but seem to have missed the scumbag boat somewhere.
While I agree that both the plaintiffs and lawyers here are scumbags, I disagree with your conclusion. The issue here is not the scumbags but the law itself. The LAW is what’s keeping us from being competitive. Because even without the scumbags businesses are required to spend a lot of money for largely unnecessary modifications. I’m surprised restaurants aren’t required to provide braille menus. Or multilingual menus. Or left-handed toilet flushers.
How is the United States Postal Service allowed to not have automatics doors?
Earl, I read your blog on a regular basis and, for the most part, tend to agree with many of your stances. However, this is one where I believe you’re incorrect. While I feel badly that you may be under attack of by a shyster lawyer and a disingenous “client” (who possibly files these suits as a source of income), the ADA has been the “law of the land” for 20 years. Succinctly, it is a civil-rights issue. If someone were approached at a polling place with a literacy test in 1984, Federal agents would have swarmed the place. However, when it comes to the civil rights of the disabled, there is still a reluctance to comply. Businesses that fail to comply with the law only seem to do so when compelled by threat of, or actual, legal action. I understand that compliance with ADA often results in a financial cost to the business or building owner but, for better or worse, it is part of the cost of doing business as are the electric and water bills. (Unlike utilities, it is a one-time cost.) In addition, if the cost of compliance is onerous for a small business, the law contains exemptions that free that business from compliance. I have an acquaintance who owned a restaurant and was sued because the restrooms were about 2″ narrower than required by ADA. In addition to the cost of making the modifications, he, too, was saddled with the legal costs of a settlement – even though the disabled person had never entered the restaurant. Nevertheless, I can’t help by think about and empathize with a disabled individual who might have enjoyed a great meal and found that, despite a desperate need, could not enter the restroom.
In short (despite the length of the above), it is difficult for me to muster sympathy or empathy for a business that fails to comply with the law after 20 years. Anyone who intends to open a business in this day and age needs to ensure that it is in compliance with existing law and, if not, insist that the facilities be brought into compliance before signing a lease.
I would agree with most of what you are saying except for two points:
1. Most of these people (who supposedly are disabled) never experienced any “irreperable harm” by a business not being totally ADA compliant; in fact they never even go in to the business. These “drive-by lawsuit” addicts are simply trying to legally steal from someone else.
2. If there is a particular issue that is not ADA compliant in a business or property, there is no time provided to correct the problem. Without any advance notice, you get hit with a Federal Law suit and now are on the hook for tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees with no legal option other than to pay. (A better way would be for the business or property owner to be afforded a 30-60 day window to correct a problem before all the legalities start.) Most business or property owners would be happy to correct any problems if they knew there was an issue before all the law suits start flying around.
Earl
EDCB pretty much sums up what’s wrong with America. He/She doesn’t get the real issue, doesn’t understand the opposition, and is arguing points that few disagree with.
I don’t think that Earl or anyone else is arguing that restaurants shouldnt have bathrooms that can accommodate wheelchairs. The issue is that the law gives people who shouldn’t even have standing the right to sue businesses.
It should be a compliance issue like other compliance issues. If someone complains and the city/town finds that you’re not in compliance, you have 30 day to fix the problem. No lawsuits. No slimy lawyers.
As I said, scumbag people are not the issue. The law is a bad law thought up by people who don’t understand the real world.
On this one, Dennis, I am in agreement with you….
Earl
Earl: Thank you for posting this. I used to have a small business in Oakland Park, and this group was relentless and deliberately intimidating. We used to alert each other up-and-down the street when one of us would site an ADA bully, and would hang our various signs, “Out to Lunch”, “Back in an Hour”, etc. I’ve had them stand outside my glass door and enragingly scream threats at me, promising to “be back”, “sue me”, etc. Sadly, many of them are little more than thugs trying to ‘get it anyway they can.’ This ‘run-wild’ extortionist group should be put to rest NOW.
Danita
The laws SUCK! You will never please or accommodate everyone! We have spent BILLIONS on wheelchair ramps on every sidewalk for the occasional wheelchair (WHICH USUALLY USES THE STREET INSTEAD) Small businesses AGREED are hit hard with this complete BS. AND YES THE LAWYERS, WHICH I PREFER TO CALL OPPORTUNISTS ARE THIEVES IN THE SCENARIO AS WELL. I too am handicapped by hearing loss, should we hire interpreters for every business in the world so I can hear?!
GET A GRIP, AND DO GOODERS MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS! OR PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR BIG MOUTHS ARE!
Earl
I whole handily agree with you on this. I have a friend who had to close his doors due to a frivolous ADA lawsuit.
These clowns are the “slip and fall” artists of the 21st century
I hope you folks are just as passionate about being against “hate” legislation and other appeasements which just erode our freedoms and end up punishing people who don’t deserve to be punished.
@Danita why not take pictures and videos of these people as they rant outside your businesses and try to get a news organization interested in the story? Capture someone stepping over the line that can be used to arrest them or allows YOU to sue THEM. Start a blog and do what the lawyers involved are doing to you: damage their businesses. Expose them for the scum they are and hit them in the pocketbook. Create an environment where taking these cases will result in public backlash against these attorneys. If the ADA bullys can’t get anyone to take their cases then they can’t do their bullying.
@Earl I don’t know why you can’t mention the names of these lawyers. Law suits are a matter of public record. Get someone in the media interested.
Dennis-
Anyone can go online and find all the Federal ADA lawsuits that have been initiated by these creeps. If anyone discovers this information and posts it here, that is their prerogative.
Earl
This federal law took affect in 1991. As existing non-single family residential properties have been altered or remodeled since, ADA compliance has been incorporated. If you purchased a property since 1991, due dilligence for ADA compliance is an important issue. Properties can develop an ADA plan to be implemented in the future. If not sure of your rights and how to defend a claim, consult with a FL licensed architect. If modifications, alterations, remodeling, etc. were performed, with or without building permits, and even if overlooked by the AHJ, that will not alleviate an owner from compliance. These ‘parties’ have been all over Broward County since the mid-1990′s so it not a new cash cow. Not trying to get work for architects but thet can assist you. I suggest an owner NOT hire a PE for this assistance.