Hernandez v. BMV Hotels, LP

Background

Gerardo Hernandez sued BMV Hotels, LP over alleged accessibility violations at the Best Western Plus Forest Park Inn Hotel in Gilroy, California. The opinion states that Hernandez is physically disabled under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and relevant California laws, and that BMV Hotels owns and operates the hotel. Hernandez visited the hotel on October 21, 2018. He alleged violations of the ADA, California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act, and specified provisions of the California Health and Safety Code.

The parties stipulated that Hernandez is disabled under the ADA, BMV Hotels owns and operates the hotel, the hotel is a place of public accommodation under the ADA, Hernandez visited on October 21, 2018, and access barriers existed on that date. Hernandez submitted an expert’s further inspection identifying more than one hundred additional barriers. BMV Hotels filed a qualified non-opposition to Hernandez’s summary-judgment motion and did not dispute the relevant facts described in the opinion.

ADA claim

The court explained that Title III of the ADA prohibits disability discrimination in the full and equal enjoyment of a public accommodation’s goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations. The court applied the elements requiring proof that the plaintiff has a disability, the defendant owns, leases, or operates a public accommodation, architectural barriers exist, and the plaintiff has actual knowledge of those barriers.

Because BMV Hotels did not dispute Hernandez’s disability, the hotel’s status as a public accommodation, the existence of barriers, or Hernandez’s actual knowledge of them, the court found no genuine dispute as to any material fact. The court therefore granted summary judgment on the ADA claim.

Injunctive relief

Hernandez also sought an injunction requiring BMV Hotels to remove the accessibility barriers. The court found that he had standing—the legal ability to seek relief in federal court—because he alleged that he could not stay at the hotel due to the lack of wheelchair-accessible suites with enough beds for his family, and BMV Hotels did not contest that allegation. The court also stated that an ADA plaintiff with standing concerning encountered barriers may seek injunctive relief concerning related barriers that the plaintiff did not personally encounter.

The court found an injunction appropriate and ordered BMV Hotels to correct the listed conditions so they complied with the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design by July 7, 2021. The listed conditions included excessive slopes and gaps; inaccessible routes, parking spaces, entrances, doors, rooms, restrooms, meeting rooms, and pool and spa areas; improperly positioned or unreachable controls and items; inadequate clearances; malfunctioning or improperly configured doors and lifts; and other specified accessibility problems at the hotel.

California claims and judgment

The court stated that, under California Civil Code section 51(f), an ADA violation also violates the Unruh Act. It further stated that the Unruh Act allows at least $4,000 in statutory damages for each offense and that damages may be recovered when a plaintiff experiences difficulty, discomfort, or embarrassment because of the violation. Hernandez alleged those experiences, and BMV Hotels did not dispute the allegation. The court awarded Hernandez $4,000.

The court granted Hernandez’s motion for summary judgment, entered judgment in his favor and against BMV Hotels, and ordered the hotel to correct the listed conditions. It retained jurisdiction to enforce the order through July 7, 2021, or administratively close the case. The opinion also stated that requests for fees and costs must be filed under the applicable federal and local rules.