It is widely believed that defendants who succeed in Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Unruh Civil Rights Act cases seldom recover their legal fees or defense costs. This perception often drives businesses to settle rather than contest meritless claims through summary judgment or trial. However, this trend appears to be shifting, as more courts are now awarding attorneys’ fees and defense costs to successful defendants.

Recently, a defendant was awarded over $100,000 in legal fees and costs in two separate cases. The first award was against Orlando Garcia, a frequent plaintiff, and the second targeted his legal team at the Center for Disability Access. Although both Garcia and the Center for Disability Access have appealed these rulings, the defendants continue to diligently pursue enforcement of the judgments during the appeals process.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision in Garcia vs. Gateway Hotel LP (9TH Cir. 21-55926 9/15/23) to reimburse the hotel’s litigation costs. The appellate court agreed that the trial court acted within its discretion in ordering the hotel’s expenses to be reimbursed after it successfully defended against Garcia’s ADA lawsuit.

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(d)(1), courts have the authority to allocate costs to a prevailing defendant. The Garcia ruling has provided clarity on the criteria for awarding costs in ADA-related cases. In this instance, the case involved allegations that the hotel’s reservation agents failed to adequately inform guests about potential accessibility issues—claims that had been rejected by multiple other courts under Section 302(e) of the 2010 ADA Standards.

The Court of Appeals determined that the ADA’s fee-and-cost-shifting provision, which typically requires businesses to cover the plaintiff’s legal fees and costs, also permits awarding costs to a successful ADA defendant, even if the case is not deemed frivolous or baseless.

In our experience, courts may allocate attorneys’ fees to prevailing defendants without requiring proof that the litigation was frivolous or vexatious. Additionally, courts may grant attorneys’ fees if it is determined that the lawsuit was indeed frivolous or vexatious.