Johnson v. Jun

Background

Scott Johnson sued In Suk Jun, Kyu Jin Jun, Jung Youn Lee, and Jeong Ae Lee under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act. He sought an injunction, statutory damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs. Johnson alleged that he is a C-5 quadriplegic who uses a wheelchair and that, during three visits to the store in April and May 2019, he encountered inaccessible parking. He alleged that a built-up curb ramp entered the access aisle and that the parking stall and access aisle had slopes exceeding applicable limits.

Jung Youn Lee and Jeong Ae Lee initially sought a stay and later moved to dismiss. The court denied those requests. Johnson and those two defendants later reached a settlement, and Johnson voluntarily dismissed them. In Suk Jun and Kyu Jin Jun never answered or otherwise appeared. The court entered default against both defendants on January 9, 2020.

Jurisdiction, service, and default judgment

The court found that it had federal-question jurisdiction over the ADA claim and supplemental jurisdiction over the related Unruh Act claim. It also found that In Suk Jun and Kyu Jin Jun were properly served by substituted service at their place of business followed by mailing, giving the court personal jurisdiction over them.

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 55, default judgment may be entered when a defendant fails to plead or otherwise defend. The court considered the seven factors commonly used for that decision, including prejudice, the apparent merits of the claims, the sufficiency of the complaint, the amount at stake, the possibility of factual disputes, excusable neglect, and the preference for decisions on the merits. Because the defendants did not participate, the court treated the complaint’s liability-related factual allegations as true, but did not automatically accept the requested damages.

ADA and Unruh Act claims

The court found that Johnson had Article III standing because he alleged a disability, personally encountered the parking barriers, alleged an intent to return after the store became accessible, and sought relief that could address his injuries.

The court found that Johnson had adequately alleged the elements of a Title III ADA claim: he is disabled, the defendants allegedly owned a place of public accommodation, and he was denied full and equal access because of his disability. The court applied the 1991 ADA Accessibility Guidelines because public records showed that the store was constructed in 1976 and did not show later construction or alterations. The court stated that the 2010 standards would govern the injunction because remedial work would occur after March 15, 2012.

Accepting Johnson’s allegations as true, the court found that the parking aisle did not comply with the ADA because its slope exceeded the applicable one-to-fifty, or 2%, limit and that the condition denied Johnson full and equal access. The court also found that Johnson had plausibly shown that removing the barriers was readily achievable. Because the defendants did not appear, they did not meet their burden of showing that removal was not readily achievable. The court further found that the alleged ADA violation also established an alleged violation of the Unruh Act.

Relief awarded

The court granted default judgment against In Suk Jun and Kyu Jin Jun. It granted an injunction requiring them to bring the parking lot into compliance with the 2010 ADA Accessibility Guidelines no later than six months after service of the injunction.

The court awarded Johnson $4,000 in statutory damages under the Unruh Act. It also awarded $3,550 in attorneys’ fees and costs. The court calculated $2,680 in attorneys’ fees using adjusted hourly rates of $475, $350, and $250 for the attorneys involved and 7.5 hours of work. The remaining $870 consisted of a $400 filing fee, $70 in service costs, and $400 in investigation costs.

The court directed Johnson to submit a revised proposed judgment that accurately reflected his name and complied with the order. Judge Beth Labson Freeman dated the order November 5, 2020.