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1 1 (January 24, 2024)

handle is hein.crs/goveocj0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional_______ R esearch Service Tester Lawsuits Under the Americans with Disabilities Act January 24, 2024 This term, the Supreme Court granted review in Acheson Hotels, LLC v. Laufer, a case asking whether testers (people who seek to identify legal violations but do not necessarily intend to patronize the business they are investigating) have standing to enforce a disability law regulation. On December 5, 2023, the Supreme Court issued an opinion dismissing the case as moot. Deborah Laufer sued a hotel in Maine for its failure to provide information about accessible hotel rooms on its website. Laufer argued that the hotel violated a regulation, the Reservation Rule, enforcing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Laufer never intended to book a hotel room in Maine, and she sued hundreds of hotels for similar violations. Eventually, she singlehandedly generated a circuit split on whether someone who never plans to make a reservation has standing to enforce the Reservation Rule. The Supreme Court granted certiorari to resolve this issue, but because the Court dismissed the case as moot after Laufer withdrew her claims, the underlying legal question that triggered the circuit split remains unresolved. Beyond the specific question presented in Laufer, the case highlights issues of continuing salience under the ADA as a whole, including who has standing to sue, the role of private litigants in enforcement, and the potential for misconduct in high-volume litigation. This Sidebar reviews the case, briefly discusses these broader issues, and identifies potential considerations for Congress. The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Reservation Rule The ADA requires businesses, nonprofits, and state and local governments to accommodate people with disabilities. The statute covers three major areas of public life: employment (Title I), public services by state and local governments (Title II), and public accommodations by businesses and nonprofits open to the public (Title III). Businesses open to the public must generally make reasonable changes in policies or procedures (such as allowing service animals inside) or modifications in the built environment (such as providing wheelchair ramps). Architectural barriers must be removed when access is readily achievable. In addition, the ADA requires that new buildings be designed and constructed to meet accessibility standards. People denied access can bring lawsuits against covered entities. For public accommodations, private litigants may seek attorney's fees and injunctive relief (that is, changes to make a business accessible) but may not recover damages. Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov LSB11110 CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Conaress -