Facts

Plaintiff Charles Blackwell, a legally-blind and visually disabled person was a patron of defendant Thai Speed Inc., a restaurant located at 1268 Grant Avenue in San Francisco and owned by defendant Christopher Foley. Blackwell sued Foley and the restaurant for lack of disabled access.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Blackwell claimed the restaurant had numerous barriers to access for disabled persons, particularly for a visually disabled person. These alleged barriers included the entrance to the restaurant (which had a steep slope) and the men's restroom.

Result

The parties settled for $10,000, for damages only. A consent decree was entered and an order was issued by the court for injunctive relief, requiring defendant to make the premises accessible. Plaintiff's motion for statutory fees, litigation expenses, and costs, as the prevailing party, is pending.

Other Information

Following the settlement, the parties agreed either to negotiate plaintiff's statutory attorneys' fees or submit plaintiff's attorneys' fees request to the court via a motion. After negotiations were unsuccessful, plaintiff filed a motion for all of his attorneys' fees, which included further fees for filing the motion and preparing opening and reply briefs. On July 15, 2010, following a contested hearing, Judge Patel adopted Magistrate Larson's recommendation and ordered defendants to pay $105,147 in attorney fees. FILING DATE: April 15, 2008.