Whitaker v. Avocado Toast Inc

Background

Brian Whitaker brought a claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) seeking injunctive relief based on an alleged access barrier. The defendant’s counsel represented that the barrier had been fully remedied and removed. Whitaker accepted that representation and stated that he had no objection to dismissal of the ADA claim.

Whitaker also asserted a claim under California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act. He stated that, if the federal ADA claim were dismissed, he had no objection to the court declining to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the state-law claim so that he could refile it in state court.

Rulings

The court explained that private plaintiffs may pursue only injunctive relief under the ADA and that removal of an alleged barrier before trial can make an ADA claim moot. Because the barrier had been removed and Whitaker accepted that the ADA claim was moot, the court determined that it lacked subject-matter jurisdiction and DISMISSED the ADA claim. The court noted that it could take this action even though the defendant had not yet filed a jurisdictional challenge.

The court also declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction, meaning jurisdiction over a related state-law claim, over the Unruh Act claim. It found that fairness, judicial economy, and respect for the state courts favored allowing Whitaker to pursue that claim in state court. The court therefore DISMISSED the second claim as well.

Disposition

The order DISMISSES both the ADA claim and the Unruh Civil Rights Act claim. The opinion does not state whether either dismissal was with or without prejudice. Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton signed the order.