Civil Rights Education & Enforcement Center v. Hospitality Properties Trust

317 F.R.D. 91, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 51802, 2016 WL 1534848
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. California
DecidedApril 15, 2016
DocketCase No. 15-cv-00221-JST
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 317 F.R.D. 91 (Civil Rights Education & Enforcement Center v. Hospitality Properties Trust) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Civil Rights Education & Enforcement Center v. Hospitality Properties Trust, 317 F.R.D. 91, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 51802, 2016 WL 1534848 (N.D. Cal. 2016).

Opinion

[95]*95ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION

Re: ECF No. 60

JON S. TIGAR, United States District Judge

Plaintiffs have brought this putative class action, alleging that Defendant Hospitality Properties Trust (“HPT”), which owns approximately 300 hotels spread across 38 states, has violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), 42 U.S.C. § 12181, et seq. by failing to provide equivalent wheelchair-accessible transportation at its hotels that provide transportation to guests who do not use wheelchairs. Before the Court is Plaintiffs’ motion for class certification. ECF No. 60. The motion is denied.

I. BACKGROUND

A. Factual and Procedural Background

Plaintiff Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center (“CREEC”) is “a nationwide civil rights membership organization based in Denver, Colorado whose mission includes... ensuring that persons with disabilities participate in our nation’s civic life without discrimination, including in the opportunity to benefit from the services provided by hotels.” ECF No, 38 ¶ 9. Each of the Named Plaintiffs (Ann Cupolo-Freeman, Ru-thee Goldkorn, and Julie Reiskin) is a member of CREEC, has a disability within the meaning of the ADA, and uses a wheelchair for mobility. Id. ¶¶ 10-12. Each of the Named Plaintiffs “requires a wheelchair accessible vehicle in order to utilize transportation services offered by hotels” and has served as a “tester” of a particular HPT-owned hotel’s compliance with ADA requirements regarding wheelchair-accessible transportation. Id. Defendant HPT is a real estate investment trust (“REIT”), which owns approximately 300 hotels across 38 states, including approximately 37 hotels in California. Id. ¶¶2, 13. Approximately 142 of these hotels provide transportation services to guests. ECF No. 60 at 5.

On October 28, 2014, Plaintiff Cupolo-Freeman called the Country Inn & Suites located in Sunnyvale, CA — a hotel owned by HPT which provides its guests with a shuttle to and from the San Jose International Airport — and asked if the hotel provided wheelchair-accessible shuttle services. W. ¶ 16. She was informed that the hotel does not offer wheelchair-accessible shuttle services. Id On June 17, 2016, Plaintiff Cupolo-Freeman once again called the Country Inn & Suites and once again was informed that the hotel does not provide a wheelchair-accessible shuttle service. Id. ¶ 17. She was told, however, that the hotel could make arrangements with a taxi company for wheelchair-accessible transportation. Id. Cupolo-Freeman called the taxi company that the hotel used and was told that reservations should be made “at a minimum at least 48 hours in advance to ensure a ride.” Id. ¶ 18. She alleges that “[t]he purportedly accessible transportation services are not equivalent to those offered nondisa-bled guests [because] the accessible transportation services are not offered during the same hours that the inaccessible transportation services are offered; the accessible transportation services require longer advance notice than the inaccessible transportation services; and information concerning the inaccessible shuttle is available on the hotel website, whereas information concerning the accessible shuttle is not.” Id. ¶ 19.

On June 23, 2015, Plaintiff Reiskin called a second HPT-owned hotel, the Hyatt Place in Colorado Springs, CO, which provides guests with free local shuttle service to locations within a five-mile radius of the hotel. Id. ¶ 27-28. She was informed that the hotel does not have a wheelchair-accessible shuttle. Id. ¶ 28. She “was told that the hotel could request a local [wheelchair]-accessible taxi for a guest requiring accessible transportation, but that the guest would have to pay for the taxi.” Id. She alleges that the hotel’s “purportedly accessible transportation services are not equivalent to those offered non-disabled guests [because] guests who use wheelchairs or scooters for mobility must pay for accessible transportation services, whereas nondisabled guests are provided with free transportation services[,] and information concerning the inaccessible shuttle is available on the hotel website, whereas informa[96]*96tion concerning the accessible shuttle is not.” Id. ¶29.

On June 29, 2015, Plaintiff Reiskin called a third HPT-owned hotel, the Staybridge Suites San Francisco Airport, which provides its guests with complimentary shuttle service to and from the San Francisco Airport and to other locations within a five-mile radius of the hotel. Id. ¶¶ 32-33. She was informed that the hotel does not have a wheelchair-accessible shuttle, and that the hotel would need at least two days advance notice to arrange accessible transportation for a guest, whereas nondisabled guests were only required to notify the hotel an hour in advance for the airport shuttle and a day in advance for the non-airport shuttle. Id. ¶¶ 32-33. She alleges that the hotel’s “purportedly accessible transportation services are not equivalent to those offered nondisabled guests [because] guests who use wheelchairs or scooters for mobility must provide at least two days advance notice, whereas nondisabled guests need only provide one hour notice for the airport shuttle, and one day notice for the non-airport shuttle; nondisabled guests know in advance that they will not be required to pay for their transportation services, whereas disabled guests do not know whether this will be the case’ and information concerning the inaccessible shuttle is available on the hotel website, whereas information concerning the accessible shuttle is not.” Id. ¶34.

Finally, on June 24, 2015, Plaintiff Gold-korn called a fourth HPT-owned hotel, the Staybridge Suites San Diego-Sorrento Mesa, which provides guests with free local shuttle service to locations within a five-mile radius of the hotel. Id ¶ 22. She was similarly informed that the hotel does not offer a wheelchair-accessible shuttle. Id ¶ 23. She “was told that the hotel could request a local wheelchair-accessible taxi for a guest requiring accessible transportation, but that the guest would have to pay for the taxi.” Id. Goldkorn alleges that “[t]he purportedly accessible transportation services are not equivalent to those offered nondisabled guests [because] guests who use wheelchairs or scooters for mobility must pay for accessible transportation services, whereas nondisa-bled guests are provided with free transportation services.” Id. ¶ 24.

Each of the Named Plaintiffs alleges that had the HPT-owned hotel-in-question provided equivalent wheelchair-accessible shuttle services, she intended to stay at the hotel and use those services. Id. ¶¶ 16, 20, 25, 30, 35. Each of the Named Plaintiffs also alleges that she was deterred from staying at the hotel-in-question by the hotel’s lack of equivalent wheelchair-accessible shuttle services. Id.

On January 15, 2015, Plaintiffs filed their initial Complaint, raising claims under Title III of the ADA, 42 U.S.C. § 12181, et seq. and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act, Cal. Civ. Code § 51, et seq. ECF No. 1. On August 3, 2015, Plaintiffs filed their First Amended Complaint (“FAC”), raising the same two claims. ECF No. 38. The FAC does not seek damages; it seeks only declaratory and injunctive relief. ECF No.

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Bluebook (online)
317 F.R.D. 91, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 51802, 2016 WL 1534848, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/civil-rights-education-enforcement-center-v-hospitality-properties-trust-cand-2016.