Overview

Real experience is indispensable when attorneys are called upon to defend claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act and/or California's Disabled Person's Act. The attorneys at Lozano Smith are truly experts in this area, having represented numerous public agencies in avoiding claims by assuring they are in compliance with the multitude of disability laws as well as in defense of some of the largest ADA claims throughout the country. We routinely advise our clients related to compliance with the various disability laws, including:

  • Architectural barriers and accessibility elements in areas including parking, paths of travel, restroom facilities, guest rooms and pool access;
  • Communication and service barriers including the lack of auxiliary aids and services like Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS), speech outputs, close captioning and Braille signage, or accommodating service animals;
  • Programmatic barriers that prevent disabled individuals from full and equal access, services and accommodations, including inadequate policies, procedures and training programs for staff;
  • Barriers at the planning stage of any potential program and/or project;
  • Modification of contractual protection and coverage, where available, to assure all possible protections are afforded to our public entity clients by any retained consultants and/or contractors.

Our Practice Group, comprised of subject matter experts, provides knowledge in all aspects of a public entity's operations that provides clients with a unique advantage in protection and defense. That expertise has enabled our attorneys to routinely identify problems and propose solutions long before a complaint or lawsuit is submitted. Moreover, the firm has working relationships with the nation's best accessibility consultants, including California's top Certified Access Specialists. We are able to quickly analyze any public entity's operations and facilities to assure compliance with the applicable disability laws, including submitting cost-effective recommendations. We work to develop the best compliance or litigation strategy for each unique situation our clients face.

Our approach to disability claims is also somewhat unique; each claim is analyzed independently to identify not only the potential risk and expense, but also to develop a plan for resolving the matter as expeditiously and efficiently as possible. Although our attorneys have litigated countless disability lawsuits through state and federal courts, they are also adept at directing matters towards structured negotiations either prior to or after the suit has been filed. These options allow us to assure that our clients' interests are advanced, whether they be minimizing risk and expense of litigation or aggressively defending against a frivolous claim.