Kelley v. Related Management Company, L.P.
- Sallie Kim
- 3:22-cv-04458
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Kelley v. Related Management, Judge Kim granted Kelley’s enforcement motion, denied defendants’ request to vacate or modify, and imposed a daily $100 penalty.
Curtis Kelley and the defendants, who were required to provide compliant temporary accommodations; the daily penalty was paid to Kelley’s counsel for Kelley’s benefit.
What happened
Curtis Kelley and the defendants entered a stipulated order requiring temporary housing with wheelchair-accessible features, kitchen facilities, an adjustable hospital bed, and accessible transportation. Kelley was housed in a hotel without a kitchen, making it difficult to follow his very low-sodium diet.
Kelley asked the court to enforce the January 6, 2023 order, while the defendants asked the court to vacate or modify it. The court found that the defendants had not shown new facts or changed circumstances justifying modification.
Judge Kim granted Kelley’s motion, denied the defendants’ motion, and imposed a $100 daily penalty payable to Kelley’s counsel for Kelley’s benefit until compliant accommodations were provided.
The detailed version
- Kelley v. Related Management Company, L.P. · No. 3:22-cv-04458
- Sallie Kim
- June 12, 2023
Background
Curtis Kelley had sought a preliminary injunction requiring an accessible entrance to his apartment or a transfer to another wheelchair-accessible unit. Before the hearing, the parties stipulated to an order resolving that request, and the court entered the order on January 6, 2023.
The stipulated order required the defendants to provide temporary housing mutually agreed upon by the parties. The housing had to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act regulations for accessible hotel rooms, including a roll-in shower; include kitchen facilities comparable to those in Kelley’s studio apartment; and be located in San Francisco proper. The defendants also had to provide a fully electronically adjustable hospital bed at least 42 inches wide and accessible transportation for Kelley and his belongings, including his wheelchair and Hoyer lift.
At the time of the ruling, the defendants were housing Kelley in a hotel room without kitchen facilities. The opinion states that Kelley followed a strict, very low-sodium diet and had difficulty preparing fresh meals without a kitchen. It also states that, although the defendants knew hotel living was difficult for Kelley, they did not apply for a permit to modify his residence until May 10, 2023.
Motions and ruling
The parties filed cross-motions concerning the stipulated injunction. Kelley moved to enforce the January 6 order. The defendants moved to vacate or modify it. The court explained that a district court has authority to modify a preliminary injunction—an order issued before final judgment—when new facts or changed circumstances support doing so.
The court found that the defendants had not demonstrated any new facts or changed circumstances. It therefore granted Kelley’s motion requiring the defendants to comply with the January 6, 2023 order and denied the defendants’ motion to vacate or modify that order.
The court also imposed a daily penalty of $100, payable directly to Kelley’s counsel for Kelley’s benefit. The penalty applies for every day Kelley is not housed in accommodations that comply with the January 6 order. The opinion states that Kelley may use the money to buy healthy, low-sodium prepared food, if feasible.
Effect of the order
The defendants remained required to provide the accommodations specified in the January 6 order. The opinion does not identify the additional defendants by name in its text beyond the caption’s reference to “et al.” Judge Sallie Kim signed the order as a United States Magistrate Judge.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.