In my last
piece, I told you about a recent ruling from the District Court for the Central
District of California in a case called Castelan
v. Universal Studios which granted judgment in Universal’s favor in a case
alleging violation of the ADA brought by two disabled guests that were not
permitted to ride The Mummy because they did not meet the minimum ride
requirements of one functioning arm / hand and one functioning leg. The court premised its ruling on two
independent grounds. The
first, which was the subject of my last piece, was that the ADA did not require
amusement ride access to guests with disabilities. That part of the ruling is, in my opinion, as
questionable as it potentially game-changing and should be taken with the
proverbial grain of salt for the time being.
But the second basis for the court’s judgment was both exactly what I
would have argued in Universal’s place and finally gives us some long
awaited guidance. So, let’s talk about
that one and what it could mean for the industry moving forward. A little preview – This holding might not be
perfect, but I think it has a lot more legs than the first one.
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Sunday, January 19, 2014
Thursday, January 16, 2014
GameChanger? California Court Holds Disabled Access To Amusement Rides Not Required By The Americans With Disabilities Act
In July 2012, I told you about a lawsuit filed against
Universal Studios Hollywood that I described at the time as “the
most important industry lawsuit in years” and “one of the rare legal decisions
that could equally impact the day-to-day operations of a small FEC and a huge
multi-park resort.” The case was Castelan v. Universal Studios, filed in
the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Why was it such a big deal? Because it was poised to be the first case to
squarely put at issue the extent to which the Americans With Disabilities Act
requires amusement facilities to allow ride access to disabled guests. The ADA has been around for more than two
decades, but surprisingly there are no cases that have spoken to this
particular issue. On January 10, the
court issued a ruling granting judgment in favor of Universal Studios finding,
essentially, that an operator of an amusement ride may exclude disabled guests
for virtually any reason without violating the ADA. The decision is remarkable in that it flies
in the face of long standing consensus belief – even in the amusement industry – about the
ADA. Is it a game changer for the
amusement industry? Could be. But don’t everyone get too excited just
yet.