GENERAL ORDER No. 56
AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT ACCESS LITIGATION
In any action which asserts denial of a right of access protected by Titles II or III of the Americans
with Disabilities Act, 42 USC §§ 12131-89, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 16, the Court
ORDERS that the following shall apply:
1. Service. Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(m), plaintiff shall promptly
complete service on all defendants. A plaintiff who is unable to complete service on all
defendants within 60 days may, prior to the expiration of that period, file a Motion for
Administrative Relief pursuant to Civil Local Rule 7-11 requesting an extension of the schedule
required by this Order.
2. Responsive Pleading. Within the time allowed for responsive pleading under Federal
Rule of Civil Procedure 12, a defendant may either (a) answer or (b) file a motion under Rule
12(b). Filing a motion under Rule 12(b) does not automatically relieve the parties of the
requirements of this Order.
3. Stay of Proceedings and Relief from Requirements of this Order. All discovery, motion
practice (except for motions under Rule 12(b) and motions to appear pro hac vice), and other
proceedings are STAYED unless the assigned judge orders otherwise. Requests to lift the stay to
conduct specific discovery, to file any other motion, to be relieved of any of the requirements of
this Order, or to enforce any of the requirements of this Order may be made by stipulation and
proposed order under Civil Local Rule 7-12 or by filing a Motion for Administrative Relief under
Civil Local Rule 7-11.
4. Initial Disclosures and Production of Documents.
a) Initial disclosures required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a)(1) shall be
completed no later than 7 days prior to the joint site inspection required by Paragraph 7.
Examples of what the initial disclosures must contain include:
• Each party shall disclose all information in that party’s possession or control that may
be used to support its claims or defenses regarding the accessibility of the premises,
transportation service, examination, course, program, service, activity, website, mobile
software application, or other technology.
• Defendant shall disclose all information in defendant’s possession or control regarding
the construction or alteration history of the subject premises if defendant intends to
dispute liability on that basis.
• In a Title II action, defendant shall disclose all information in defendant’s possession or
control regarding programmatic compliance, a transition plan, or a self-evaluation plan
if defendant intends to dispute liability on that basis.
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• If plaintiff claims damages, plaintiff shall set forth the damages computation required
by Rule 26(a)(1)(A)(iii) but need not include attorneys’ fees and costs.
• Plaintiff shall disclose the day, month, and year of all dates on which plaintiff claims to
have sought access to the premises, transportation service, examination, course,
program, service, activity, website, mobile software application, or other technology
and shall disclose any documentary evidence regarding the alleged access efforts and
barriers plaintiff encountered.
• If a defendant claims the injunctive relief sought is not readily achievable, that
defendant shall disclose all information in its possession or control supporting that
defense, including information pertaining to the factors stated in 42 U.S.C. § 12181(9)
and to any alternative methods that are used to provide access.
These examples are illustrative of the type of information initial disclosures must contain and do
not restrict any obligation imposed by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a).
b) Notwithstanding the stay imposed by Paragraph 3, upon request, a party promptly
shall provide to the requesting party any documents identified in the initial disclosures.
5. Settlement Discussions.
a) The parties are encouraged to discuss settlement at their earliest opportunity. In
those discussions, plaintiff is not required to make a monetary demand until the parties agree on
the resolution of claims for injunctive relief and all other material terms, conditioned only on
resolution of claims for damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs. Once they come to such an
agreement in principle, plaintiff promptly shall make a demand for settlement of the case in its
entirety. The demand shall specify separately the amount sought as damages, the amount sought
as attorneys’ fees, and the amount sought as costs. Plaintiff shall not require execution of a
written agreement as a precondition to making a monetary demand. If a monetary demand
would facilitate discussions, plaintiff is not precluded by this Order from discussing claims for
injunctive and monetary relief at the same time. Nothing in this Order is intended to preclude
or to determine the effect of an offer of judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 68.
b) Whenever plaintiff makes a monetary demand, defendant may request and plaintiff
then promptly shall provide an itemization of costs, an overall summary of the major categories
of work performed, the total number of hours each time keeper spent on each category of work,
and each time keeper’s billing rate. If plaintiff prefers, plaintiff may instead provide complete,
detailed time records (redacted, if necessary, for attorney-client privilege and work product).
6. Experts. This Order does not require any party to engage an expert, including a
Certified Access Specialist (CASp). In simpler cases it may be possible for parties to reach
agreement regarding corrective actions without engaging experts, or without the preparation of
written expert reports. If the parties believe that a case would benefit from expert assistance, the
Court encourages them to jointly engage an expert. Before scheduling the joint site inspection
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and the settlement meeting required in Paragraphs 7 and 8 of this Order, counsel shall confer
regarding the possibility of retaining a joint expert and shall disclose whether they intend to
have a separate expert or consultant in attendance. If written expert reports are prepared, they
shall be exchanged.
7. Joint Site Inspection.
a) No later than 60 days after service of the complaint, counsel and any unrepresented
parties (accompanied by their experts or consultants and the parties themselves, if the parties so
elect or if required in order to comply with Section (c) below) shall meet in person at the subject
premises to conduct a joint site inspection. If the parties agree that plaintiff alleges only
violations unrelated to a physical location (such as programmatic or policy violations), or if the
parties already have reached an agreement resolving claims for injunctive relief and all other
material terms, conditioned only on resolution of claims for damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs,
the parties may proceed directly to the required settlement meeting described in Paragraph 8 of
this Order, in which case the settlement meeting shall be scheduled within 60 days after service
of the Complaint.
b) The parties shall inspect together the portions or aspects of the subject premises,
transportation service, examination, course, program, service, activity, website, mobile software
application, or other technology that are claimed to violate the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Plaintiff shall specify all claimed access violations and, to the extent possible at the site, the
corrective actions or policy changes requested of defendant. With respect to each claimed
violation, defendant shall specify, to the extent possible at the site, whether defendant is willing
to undertake the requested corrective actions or has an alternate proposal. If defendant claims
any proposed corrective action is not readily achievable or otherwise is not required by law,
defendant shall specify the factual basis for this claim.
c) Each party shall be represented at the joint site inspection by a person with
knowledge about the facts of the case and the authority to settle the injunctive relief claims. If a
plaintiff asserts claims based on the accessibility of a website or mobile software application, a
defendant also shall be represented at the joint site inspection by person(s) with the best possible
technical knowledge regarding the website or mobile software application at issue.
8. Settlement Meeting.
a) The joint site inspection shall be followed by an in-person settlement meeting. The
settlement meeting may occur at the same time and location as the joint site inspection or may be
scheduled separately, but not later than 35 days after the joint site inspection.
b) Participation in the settlement meeting cannot be satisfied by telephone, video
conference, or exchanging letters, emails, or texts. The parties themselves and their counsel must
be personally present. Governmental entities, corporations, and non-governmental entities must
be represented by a person (in addition to counsel of record) who has, to the greatest extent
feasible, authority to settle and who is knowledgeable about the facts of the case.
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c) Plaintiff shall be prepared at the outset of the settlement meeting to provide
defendant with the demand for settlement described in Paragraph 5(a) of this Order.
d) If a party believes that it would be unsafe or otherwise inappropriate for a required
individual to appear in person at the settlement meeting, that party may seek relief from the
requirement of personal attendance in the manner set forth in Paragraph 3 of this Order.
9. Mediation. Within 42 days from the joint site inspection or settlement meeting,
whichever occurs first, the parties shall file either the form Notice of Settlement of ADA Access
Case or the form Notice of Need for Mediation and Certification of Counsel, both available on
the Court’s website. Unless settled, the matter will then be referred automatically to mediation
for a session to be scheduled as soon as feasible, and in no event later than 90 days from the date
the Notice of Need for Mediation and Certification of Counsel is filed, unless otherwise ordered
by the assigned judge. The mediator shall preside over settlement negotiations that address all
issues presented by the matter, including requests for injunctive relief, damages, and attorneys’
fees. The mediator and the parties shall address the issues in the manner and order set forth in
Paragraph 5 of this Order. Should a settlement be reached, counsel shall ensure that the parties
make a written record of the essential terms of the settlement sufficient to permit any party to
move to enforce the settlement should it not be consummated according to its terms. Should any
settlement be conditioned upon future conduct such as remediation, upon submission of an
appropriate order of dismissal that includes retention of jurisdiction to enforce the settlement the
assigned judge will retain jurisdiction to enforce the settlement.
10. Request for Case Management Conference. If the case does not resolve within 7 days of
the mediator’s filing of a Certification of ADR Session reporting that the mediation process is
concluded and that the case did not settle in its entirety, plaintiff shall file the form Notice
Requesting Case Management Conference, available on the Court’s website.
ADOPTED: June 21, 2005 FOR THE COURT:
AMENDED: February 17, 2009
AMENDED: November 5, 2009
AMENDED: May 29, 2012
AMENDED: April 17, 2013 nunc pro tunc May 29, 2012
AMENDED: January 1, 2020
PHYLLIS J. HAMILTON
CHIEF JUDGE
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