Corfee Stone & Associates

08/26/2023

12/14/2022

Corfee Stone Victory Re Fair Housing!!

Corfee Stone prevailed on a tenant complaint against an apartment complex who alleging that it failed to offer him translation services. HUD thoroughly investigated and found that our client did not discriminate against the bilingual tenant.

The Fair Housing Act requires Housing Providers (apartments, condos etc) receiving federal funds, like section 8 Housing, to provide translation services in the application process, and regarding all significant notices. Applicants and residents are entitled to not be excluded from any government program based on race color, and national origin. The FHA also requires a written plan to include resources on translation services/methods, location of live translators and/or other media resources.

Our law firm can help you with said compliance. 916-487-5441

 Catherine Corfee Esq. regularly represents landlords, and/or tenants regarding fair housing issues involving harassment and discrimination.

Corfee Stone Law Corp.
916-487-5441
Serving Northern and Southern, California.

07/31/2019

From Corfee Stone & Associates
To
Corfee Stone Law Corporation
Jan. 2019

07/08/2019

We won!

Kaiser Hospital Must Improve It’s Training and Use of Auxiliary Aids to The Deaf, Including Live Interpreters.

After nearly 2 1/2 years of hard fought litigation, Corfee Stone and the Cutter Law firm prevailed against Kaiser South Sacramento hospital who denied a deaf patient a live interpreter to disclose his significant stroke. He had an unexpected stroke and during normal surgery. He could not tell anyone because live interpreters are only used before and after surgery. Otherwise, They were using small videos where he hast to rely on the Wi-Fi and computer equipment to learn about his medical condition and understand it but he had had a stroke. He needed a live interpreter, someone who could see him, see his hand signing and his week left hand. He was never told his diagnosis for eight days, and meanwhile he was becoming more and more paralyzed on his left side. His father is the one that noticed it!

The Cutter Law firm and Corfee Stone and Associates are proud to announce this victory for our client and for the deaf and the hard of hearing. A civil right gone right!

Judge Brian Van Camp saw through Kaiser’s weak defense.

Corfee Stone: We Practice Both Disability Rights For Plaintiff’s and Defend Business’s regarding their Rights from Abusive ADA Lawsuits

We promote the Truth!

www.corfeestone.com
916-487-5441
Catherine Corfee, Esq.

06/20/2019

Who will Pay for Scott Johnson’s Criminal Defense of Tax Evasion?

All of the new businesses that he sues, that’s who! My law office has noticed a spike in new ADA lawsuits filed by Johnson since the announcement of his criminal charges.

Disabled plaintiff Scott N. Johnson has sued thousands of businesses in Northern California Federal Courts for alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities’ Act (ADA). He claims he lacks access to businesses to patronize as compared to the non-disabled. He alleged he suffers discomfort, embarrassment or difficulty to gain access, yet he may return 6 more times before he sues. The California Unruh Act provides a minimum of
$4000 per visit as a remedy. It literally creates an incentive for the disabled to return to the business and throw him or herself in alleged harm’s way. Johnson almost always settles his lawsuits, and is paid his ransom. He also targets Moms and Pops who cannot afford to fight, and these claims are predominantly uninsured.

In late May, 2019, Scott Johnson was recently indicted by the Grand Jury for tax evasion. He was accused of not declaring all of his lawsuit income for certain years.

I have defended hundreds of businesses sued By Scott Johnson. In each case, it is the same boilerplates Complaint. He alleges that he was denied access to the business because of his disability. The ADA has thousands of disable access codes with measurements and slope levels. For example, if your business provides parking, then at least one space must be wide enough for a van. There are a myriad of codes that an owner and operator must comply with depending on the circumstances.A parking space must be flat and level and no greater than 2% in all running direction. If your parking space is 2.5% level in slope, Johnson will sue you. Is he really barred from gaining access? Can he even feel the difference? Is it really discrimination? Not likely. The “California” Federal Courts, however, are enforcing the ADA as strict liability with no room for reasonable differences, and good faith efforts of compliance. They fail to apply the black letter law that a deviation of the ADA code is not per se discrimination. The Federal Judges assume that a disabled person is barred for a code deviation, which is not necessarily true.

Take for example a door k**b that some disable people can use. The code says that door hardware shall not require twisting, so a lever is needed. If Johnson can use a door k**b, then how is that strict liability? It isn’t. To have a jury resolve that question, however, is cost prohibitive. You are looking at years of litigation and discovery. The problem is, the Judges assume too much.

In his cases, Johnson demands that the Court order the business to provide perfect access so he can allegedly return to the business. In fact, he is not allowed to sue unless he has “a plan to return” and “will return.”

The problem is, even when my clients comply, Johnson will not settle for a reasonable mount of money. He and his law firm make excessive settlement demands! They know the law is in their favor. His attorneys will drag the case on and on to churn it for more attorneys’ fees to later reclaim or demand a jury trial. Who can afford that? You cannot try a case for under $50,000 these days!

I would bet that he has never returned to 95 % of my clients’ businesses. When I ask them, “have you seen Scott Johnson,” the answer is always no. In fact, most of them don’t even know what he looks like because they never saw him at their facility before his lawsuit. They commonly see a person taking pictures of their parking lot and measuring.That person, however, is not in a wheelchair.

Johnson is purposefully stealth. He will not write you, or complain about access for the likely fear that you would make an ADA improvement and undermine his lawsuit plans.

Scott Johnson uses a wheelchair, but he can use his hands to put on his glasses, pick up a coffee cup, and can drive. I have seen him. I have deposed him. Yet, he will sue over elements as if he cannot do those things.

My office has tracked Scott Johnson’s lawsuits for a long time. Recently, he filed 25 new ADA lawsuits in a span of 9 days since the media announcement of his tax evasion charges. In my opinion, those businesses are going to help pay for his criminal defense. Why else would he significantly increase his filings?

I hope one day we have a break through with the Courts. They need to give true meaning to the select wording of the ADA. The statute defines discrimination as denying the disabled full and equal “enjoyment” of access to the goods and services provided. Scott Johnson does not intend to enjoy the goods and services of the businesses that he sues. He is missing in action attending to his new lawsuits.

Scott Johnson drives around and looks for ADA problems in parking lots. When he sees a problem, only then does he decide to visit the business to sue them. Is that a patron who seeks to enjoy the goods and/or services?

Johnson does not ask them or warn them to fix anything. The law does not require him to. Once he ropes them into Federal Court, he and his law firm demand significant amounts of money to settle, or they threaten a trial.

He argues that his lawsuits help the disabled community. Not at all. Manufacturing a lawsuit is of no help. Think about it. A lawsuit Is a legal dispute costing thousands of dollars, and it uses up our judicial resources. Johnson could be a hero out educating businesses, teaching them and having forums to help them comply.

Lawsuits by Scott Johnson is of no benefit to the disabled. He is simply making money for himself and his attorneys under the guise of the ADA. It is a farce on our judicial system.

By Catherine M. Corfee, Esq.
916-487-5441
ADA Attorney
Corfee Stone Law Corporation provides pre-ADA lawsuit advice and defend those in litigation.

05/24/2019

FLASH NEWS!

Disabled Scott N. Johnson indicted today on tax evasion regarding his thousands of ADA lawsuits and the money he received.I am in the news in this issue!!

https://wp.me/p14KRi-2th1

03/16/2019

Calif. Employers - Change Your Settlement and Waiver Agreements!

This update is for California employers, including employment law attorneys like myself.

Generally, in California, when you settle and resolve an employment dispute, the employer and the employee enter into a settlement agreement, which has a general release where the employee agrees to waive any and all claims known or “unknown” that could be later discovered. In order to ensure that this general release is valid and enforceable, the employee must understand his or her right to not waive those claims pursuant to the protections of California Civil Code section 1542. Section 1542 actually precludes the employee from waiving unknown or unsuspected claims that could have affected his or her decision to settle if later discovered.

To have a settlement and waiver of all unknown claims, an employer needs to cite 1542 verbatim so an employee clearly knows that he or she is waving those protections and agrees to give up any and all unknown or unsuspected claims that could later be discovered.

A good settlement agreement will cite the language of section 1542 and have the employee knowingly waive it. Some of language in 1542 has now changed very slightly by the new amendment effective January 1, 2019.

One change adds the words, “releasing party” and there are a few other tweaks. The point is to check your settlement agreements to make sure that the waiver of Civil Code 1542 matches Nee amendment when you insert it in your settlement agreement.

By Catherine Corfee, Esq.
ADA Access, Employment Law and Housing Discrimination Attorney

Call for a consultation if you need advice regarding employment law, ADA accessibility law or housing discrimination matters. 916-487-5441

Corfee Stone Law Corporation

Serving Northern and Southern California.

03/01/2019

AVOID ADA WEBSITE LAWSUITS!
*Especially Hotels!

If you have a website that promotes your goods and services, be sure that individuals with disabilities can access and use it. This means you need added features, descriptive content, contrasting colors, and a certain software. Modifying your website is not complicated, however, figuring out the legal requirements for ADA compliance is challenging. This is because the Federal Department of Justice has not published federal regulations Identifying the requirements for your website.on access website. At one point, they did publish some but then de-published them. This void has simply created a haven for lawsuit abuse.

The Federal ADA and California disabled access laws require that business websites provide equal access to the disabled, including but not limited to, the blind, sight impaired, deaf, hard of hearing and individuals with mobility limitations (who use wheelchairs, scooters, and other similar devices).It is a very general law without any specifics identifying the colors, the software program need it, how to ensure a blind person can use the website and how a deaf person can use it and/or communicate with your company for the goods and services on the website.

At Corfee Stone Law Corporation, you can have a private phone consultation with me, Catherine Corfee Esq. I am an active ADA attorney who litigates these cases and provides pre-lawsuit Advice and strategies. I will help guide you through the necessary changes you should immediately make to potentially avoid one of these trendy lawsuits. Unfortunately, there is no clear answer for any attorney to give to their client. However, a creative and aggressive attorney who is strategic, could significantly help and make a difference.

Any website that is selling goods and/or services must comply with the ADA. For example, your website must have contrasting colors for the sight impaired, and an audio software program describing the contents.

For your images, or videos, you must provide written text describing the depiction. There are software programs to use for your videos that a blind person cannot see what is entitled to have access to the information. There many options.You do not need to hire a so-called expensive ADA tech. You need an ADA litigation attorney who is on the cutting edge of the new caselaw. Why? Because, there are no regulations and the courts are being forced to interpret the general law and make decisions on what the website should have. You also need a very good computer person that is savvy. They must collaborate to do the best they can to provide full unequal access to the disabled.

Many of the recent court cases have involved hotels and their websites. If you are a hotel, your Website must enable the disabled person to make a decision about the choice of room he or she wants to reserve. This includes showing pictures of the ADA accessible room, identifying the accessible features such as a roll in shower, and the grab bars. It could show the Grab bars and accessible features in the bathtub shower, including the chair or bench. I have one particular major hotel client in San Francisco that is doing a really good job. I have been able to work quite closely with them.

The unfairness of the current ADA law is that the Department of Justice has failed to publish codes or guidelines identifying the requirements that must be met. True, there are website guidelines required for government entities, but private businesses have no clear regulations. As such, it appears that the Courts are legislating from the bench and rendering ad hoc decisions. There is no consistency and truly there should be one size fits all.

At this point in time, and until the DOJ acts, I think disabled persons should be required to complain to the business before they can sue. However, this is not the current situation.

There should be a grace period in which the business can make the changes without a lawsuit. Perhaps write to your Congress Member and California Legislative
Representative could encourage action before these ADA website lawsuits spiral out of control.

The wave of ADA website lawsuits is financially affecting hard-working business owners who do not intend to discriminate. The government’s lack of guidance also hurts the disabled who have a right to full and equal access.

We can’t wait for the courts to create new and different decisions with each separate lawsuit.The courts are required to interpret the laws and codes, not legislate and create them.

I have spent a significant amount of time reading nearly every website case, the federal government guidelines, articles and blogs written by the disabled and the disability community to become more familiar with the needs of the disabled and computer options. I am by no means an IT tech person or claim to be. My job is to work with your tech person and/or company yo educate them, especially about the existing strict court cases. I have seen some good faith efforts by businesses providing access in their websites, and I am very surprised by how the courts i. California continually attack them for some idea they did not think about but an overly aggressive plaintiff’s attorney!

One must be very creative regarding these emerging issues. This is where I step in. I have not just read the cases, but I have talked to disabled individuals about their website needs and uses. I have also talked to computer techs.Both are an amazing resource that you can tap into as well.

Whether you are on a budget or not, call my office to schedule a conference call, even for half an hour or an hour to get an idea of what is necessary. My rates are reasonable. You do not need an expert ADA IT person. You need an ADA attorney who is litigating these lawsuits and a smart savvy computer person.

My goal is to be on the cutting edge of the caselaw and to help push the DOJ and California Legislature to help businesses help the disabled and reduce ADA lawsuit abuse that is destroying productivity in our economy.

Call: 916-487-5441

Catherine Corfee, Esq.
Attorney at Law
Corfee Stone Law Corporation
(W) 916-487-5441
P.O. Box 1098
Carmichael, CA 95609

[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
Fax: 916-487-5441

www.corfeestone.com

This article is not to be relied upon as express and/or legal advice in anyway.

01/21/2019

Equality for all!

12/19/2018

My dog relaxing against boxes of high stakes court room litigation!! 🙂

Corfee Stone & Associates
Attorneys at Law

We can inspect your facility for ADA and California Disabled Access and the report is confidential unlike a CASp! Don’t educate your opponent.

916-487-5441
[email protected]