At the end of April, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey signed into law a bill (Senate Bill 1406) passed by the Arizona State Legislature that will now give businesses an opportunity to correct any alleged violations of the Arizonans with Disabilities Act, which is the state’s version of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.

 

As a result of the enactment of this new law, prior to a private plaintiff filing a lawsuit for a violation of the Arizonans with Disabilities Act, written notice must be delivered to the potential defendant who owns a building, facility or parking lot. The notice must include in sufficient detail information so that the entity can identify and cure the violation or comply with the law, including the name of the aggrieved party, the date of the encounter, and nature of the barrier that the aggrieved party experienced.

 

Most notable from this new legislation is that the business owner now has a thirty (30) day period to cure the violation or comply with the law. And, if the business owner must obtain a building permit or other similar government approval in order to correct the issue, then the cure period is extended for an additional sixty (60) days so long as within the first thirty (30) days the business owner provides a corrective action plan and submits copies of the requisite building permit application or other forms. Only if the issue is not timely addressed may the aggrieved party may file its lawsuit.

 

The bill was initially lodged in the Arizona State Senate as a way to deter what many business owners deemed abusive litigation practices. It was a response to thousands of lawsuits and complaints that were filed against Arizona businesses. In the past year, more than a thousand lawsuits were brought by the disability advocacy group, Advocates for Individuals with Disabilities in connection with parking lot accessibility violations of the Arizonans with Disabilities Act. Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich contended that the lawsuits were nearly identical and frivolous. He asked the state court to consolidate, and then dismiss, the individual accessibility lawsuits filed by the disability advocacy group on grounds it did not have legal standing to pursue these claims. In addition to the new cure right, the new law redefines who may bring an action under the Act, and provides that an “aggrieved person” is someone who is subject to discrimination in violation of the Act for purposes of filing a lawsuit.

 

Stein Law represent owners for all types of commercial properties, including multifamily, office, retail and industrial buildings, shopping centers, and mixed use projects. For more information as to how we can be of service, please call (480) 889-8948, send an email to [email protected] or visit www.SteinLawPLC.com.