Zoltan Hirsch, a 37-year-old double amputee from Brooklyn has since 2010 filed a shocking 195 lawsuits against establishments in the city that are not wheelchair accessible
A handful of handicapped New Yorkers have filed more than 400 lawsuits against local small businesses for failing to pass disability safety guidelines.
And these legal claims are more controversial than most people realize.
While the people behind the lawsuits claim to be helping enforce the American with Disabilities act – and making New York a safer and more accessible place for all people – some people say they are more conman than crusader.
These individuals have been criticized by some as being part of a ‘cottage industry’ of ‘serial plaintiffs,’ targeting mom-and-pop establishments for quick cash settlements, according to the New York Post.
Zoltan Hirsch, a 37-year-old double amputee from Brooklyn has since 2010 filed a shocking 195 lawsuits against establishments in the city that are not wheelchair accessible.
The businesses range from an eyeglasses shop in Soho, to Bodegas in Brooklyn to a restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen.
And he’s not the only one – four other individuals have filed a combined 200 suits over wheelchair access.
Luigi Girotto has filed 70 suits, Pedro Fontanes has filed 55, Jerry Cankat has filed 52, and Nauqone Taylor has filed 23.
Fontanes, a 69-year-old from Queens, has filed 13 alone against businesses on Fifth Avenue in Park Slope.
At those establishments he claims to have suffered ‘harm’ and ‘injury,’ and at one restaurant complained that the mirror was too high.
The director of the Park Slope Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District committee, Mark Caserta, blasted the suits.
Pedro Fontanes, a 69-year-old from Queens who is pictured with two family members, has filed 55 suits against companies he says aren’t wheelchair accessible
At those establishments Fontanes (pictured right) claims to have suffered ‘harm’ and ‘injury’ and, at one place, complained the mirror was too high
He told the Post that going after such small establishments hurts them beyond repair – and can often cause them to go out of business.
‘Small businesses are already struggling to stay afloat, and these lawsuits could put them over the edge,’ Caserta explained.
And one of these businesses attorneys, Dennis Kearney, said that most of them end up settling to escape the cost of going to court.
‘Why would someone pay $100,000 in legal fees to go to trial when they can pay a fraction of that and be done with it?’ Kearney, who defended Uncle Barry’s craft beer bar against Fontanes earlier this year, told the post.
He explained that while plaintiffs normally don’t ask for much in damages, they do demand payment of attorney fees – which can gut small businesses.
Luigi Giotto, pictured, has filed lawsuits against 70 different establishments in New York city that he claims are not wheelchair friendly
Those fees, he said, can top $20,000, and Kearney said he believes plaintiffs and lawyers are splitting them.
Kenneth Shiotani, an attorney at the National Disability Rights network rebuked those claims.
He called private litigation the ‘most effective enforcement mechanism’ in making the city disability friendly, according to the Post.
And wheelchair ramps and bathroom doors only scrape the surface of the types of complaints that are most frequently filed.
Two blind individuals in New York took their fight online – filing a combined 23 lawsuits against websites that don’t have screen-reading software.
One woman, Marion Kiler, sued eight websites for stores based in New York in May and June alone.
One of those sites was for the Muesum of Sex’s online store. The 66-year-old said she made ‘numerous’ attempts to buy products.
Also becoming more common are individuals who sue businesses for not allowing in service dogs.
Cheryl Krist, a 62-year-old from Manhattan has filed seven suits against businesses who have not let her service dog inside with her.