Kmart Settles Suit Over Disabled Access

[Guest guest]

Kmart Settles Suit Over Access

It will pay $13 million to resolve claims that it violated the

Americans With Disabilities Act.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-kmart14mar14,1,2625966.story

By Hoffman, Times Staff Writer

March 14, 2006

Kmart Corp. agreed Monday to pay $13 million to settle a class-action

lawsuit accusing the retailer of ignoring federal regulations that

govern access for disabled customers.

The settlement, if it wins a judge's approval, would be the largest

ever under terms of the Americans With Disabilities Act.

The agreement, which plaintiffs' lawyers said could affect hundreds

of thousands of Kmart customers, would allot $12.1 million in damages

to class members in California. The remainder would go to plaintiffs

in six other states.

Kmart also agreed to spend as much as $70 million in the next eight

years to bring stores around the country into compliance with federal

standards for merchandise placement, counters, restrooms, fitting

rooms and parking lots.

Amy on, the lead plaintiffs' attorney, said her firm filed the

suit after receiving complaints from around the country. She credited

Kmart's new management for working quickly to come up with an

agreement.

" Their attitude was very can-do, " said on, a partner at a

small Denver-based firm that specializes in disability

litigation. " We are very happy with the result. "

Troy, Mich.-based Kmart, since last year a subsidiary of Sears

Holdings Corp., admitted no wrongdoing. The retailer operates 1,400

stores nationwide, including 108 in California.

The company said it would pay $8 million in cash and $5 million in

store gift cards. It promised to assist customers who use wheelchairs

and electric scooters with additions such as communications devices

that would allow them to call for help if they get stuck in aisles.

One class member, Uverda Harry, said she hoped the settlement would

make shopping at Kmart less of an ordeal. Just last month, Harry

said, a trip to her local Kmart in Oakland turned into a nightmare

when her wheelchair became trapped between clothing racks and boxes.

When she got to the checkout line, she couldn't fit through.

" I got stuck, I was banging into things, it was embarrassing, " Harry

said. " All I could do is see the things I wanted because I couldn't

get to them. "

Monetary damages would go largely to class members in California,

where state law requires significantly more payout for violations of

the federal law, on said. Plaintiffs in Colorado, Hawaii,

Massachusetts, New York, Oregon and Texas also will receive monetary

damages for violations.

The suit, filed in 1999 in U.S. District Court in Denver, came to a

standstill in early 2002 after Kmart filed for bankruptcy protection.

The case resumed after the company emerged from Chapter 11 in May

2003 under the management of Chairman Lampert, and the suit

received class certification last year. The parties will seek

approval of the settlement by Judge L. Kane in late July.

" It sends a message to the retail industry that accessibility is a

civil rights issue, and if you don't comply, you will be vulnerable, "

said Imparato, president of the American Assn. of People With

Disabilities in Washington. Further, he said, he hoped that retailers

recognized the value of the estimated $220 billion spent annually by

Americans with disabilities.

Litigation arising from the Americans With Disabilities Act has

rarely resulted in large settlements. One of the largest to date was

the $2.8 million that the Macy's chain, a unit of Federated

Department Stores Inc., paid in 2001 to settle accessibility claims.

The act, passed in 1990, sets detailed guidelines for making public

places accessible to people with disabilities.

For Harry, the Oakland plaintiff, the agreement means looking forward

to a day when she can hunt for bargains with ease.

" I just want to be able to go to Kmart and spend my money there like

an able-bodied person, " she said.

[Guest guest]

I was very happy to read this. The Kmart in my area has a horrendous parking

lot. It has such a steep incline to get into the store. It's hard just

walking up the incline and I can't even imagine being in a non-motorized wheel

chair and having to attempt the incline. The store is cramped with a roof that

leaks which makes the floor wet and dangerous at times. It certainly needs

repair.

Elaina/NY