Whitaker v. Neighborhood Market and Cafe Inc

Background

Brian Whitaker brought claims under the Unruh Civil Rights Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The opinion does not provide details about the alleged conduct or the parties’ underlying dispute. The court had issued an order requiring a response explaining why it should retain jurisdiction over the Unruh Act claim.

Unruh Act claim

The court declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the Unruh Act claim. Supplemental jurisdiction is the federal court’s authority to hear a related state-law claim alongside a federal claim. The court relied on concerns about judicial economy, convenience, fairness, and respect for state courts. It also said that Whitaker’s response to the order to show cause was boilerplate and therefore waived arguments specific to this case. The court described the case’s circumstances as involving a frequent filer of ADA and Unruh Act claims seeking federal jurisdiction to avoid California’s procedural barriers, and found those circumstances exceptional enough to decline supplemental jurisdiction.

ADA claim and disposition

Because the Unruh Act claim had been dismissed, Whitaker asked the court to dismiss the ADA claim without prejudice so both claims could be litigated in one forum. The court stated that it was inclined to grant that request, but allowed Neighborhood Market and Cafe Inc four days to object. If the defendant did not respond, the ADA claim would be dismissed without prejudice. The opinion does not state that the conditional dismissal of the ADA claim had occurred. The court dismissed the Unruh Act claim and did not reach the merits of either claim.