California Marie Callender Restaurants Pose Wheelchair Accessibility Issues, Class Action Claims

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A proposed class action case filed in early March against Marie Callender Pie Shops, LLC has been removed to California federal court.

The plaintiff, who the lawsuit says is paralyzed and requires a wheelchair for mobility, claims at least 19 of the defendant’s restaurants are not compliant with California anti-discrimination statutes—namely the Unruh Civil Rights Act and the California Disabled Persons Act. According to the complaint, the establishments lack accessible parking lots and/or restroom areas. The complaint alleges the plaintiff was not only unable to park in a handicap-accessible parking space, but that once inside the restaurant he could not access the restroom unassisted because the automatic door closer “was not adjusted to allow the bathroom door to remain open for at least three seconds.” The plaintiff was also deterred from using the facilities inside the bathroom, the lawsuit continues, because the toilet stall door hardware was supposedly not handicap-accessible. Further still, the man claims the soap and paper towel dispensers were mounted “excessively high” and “out of reach to a wheelchair-bound person.”

The case notes the plaintiff attempted to resolve the matter with the defendant directly and without litigation in November 2017, yet received no response.