Whitaker v. Prime Comms Retail, LLC
- Susan Van Keulen
- 5:21-cv-04338
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 4
In Whitaker v. Prime Comms Retail, Judge Van Keulen denied dismissal, finding wheelchair-table allegations plausibly stated ADA and Unruh Act claims.
Brian Whitaker’s ADA and California Unruh Civil Rights Act claims against Prime Comms Retail, LLC may proceed.
What happened
In Whitaker v. Prime Comms Retail, LLC, Brian Whitaker alleged that tables at an AT&T store lacked wheelchair-accessible features, including sufficient knee or toe clearance. He brought claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act.
Prime Comms Retail, LLC argued that the complaint did not describe the alleged discrimination specifically enough. The court concluded that the allegations provided enough detail to meet the minimum pleading standard at this stage.
Judge Susan Van Keulen denied the motion to dismiss the ADA claim and also denied the request to decline supplemental jurisdiction over the Unruh Act claim. The claims therefore proceed.
The detailed version
- Whitaker v. Prime Comms Retail, LLC · No. 5:21-cv-04338
- Susan Van Keulen
- Oct. 12, 2021
Background
Brian Whitaker sued Prime Comms Retail, LLC under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act. He alleged that, during a May 2021 visit to an AT&T store in Milpitas, California, he encountered barriers because the tables lacked wheelchair-accessible features. The complaint alleged that the tables did not provide sufficient knee or toe clearance for wheelchair users and might have failed to meet other ADA standards. The opinion states that the store was located on property owned by Prime Comms Retail, LLC.
Motion to Dismiss
Prime Comms Retail, LLC moved to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), which permits dismissal when a complaint does not state a legally sufficient claim. The company argued that Whitaker had not described the alleged discrimination with enough specificity, including whether accessible tables were absent or merely inaccessible during his visit. It relied on a Ninth Circuit decision involving allegations that a business failed to provide accessible service counters without identifying the particular accessibility problem.
Court’s Analysis
The court distinguished that decision from Whitaker’s complaint. It compared the allegations to other Northern District of California cases holding that allegations about insufficient knee or toe clearance provided enough detail to survive a motion to dismiss. The court explained that, at this stage, the allegations had to be accepted as true and met the minimum pleading standard.
Because the ADA allegations were sufficient, the court denied the motion to dismiss the ADA claim. The court also denied Prime Comms Retail, LLC’s request that it decline supplemental jurisdiction over the Unruh Act claim. Supplemental jurisdiction allows a federal court to hear a related state-law claim when it is connected to a federal claim before the court.
Disposition
The motion to dismiss was DENIED. The opinion did not decide whether Prime Comms Retail, LLC ultimately violated the ADA or the Unruh Civil Rights Act; it decided only that the claims could proceed past the pleading stage.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.