[nagdu] {Disarmed} U.S. Sues Firm for Barring Disabled Client'sService Dog

Sat Nov 12 23:56:01 UTC 2011

Wow.  It seems like access-denial cases are coming out of the woodwork, be 
it with a restaurant or, heaven forbid, a law firm now.  Good for the 
handler for filing a complaint, and pray she wins the fight.
Best,
Nat and Liam Joshua

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "marilyn" <t21114 at optonline.net>
To: "nagdu" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Friday, November 11, 2011 6:57 AM
Subject: [nagdu] {Disarmed} U.S. Sues Firm for Barring Disabled 
Client'sService Dog

> U.S. Sues Firm for Barring Disabled Client's Service Dog
> Brendan Pierson
> New York Law Journal
> 11-09-2011
>
> The Southern District U.S. Attorney has sued an Orange County law firm for
> allegedly discriminating against the disabled by refusing to allow a 
> client
> to
> enter its offices with her service dog.
>
> The suit (
> See Complaint
> ) alleges that Larkin, Axelrod, Ingrassia & Tetenbaum and partner John
> Ingrassia violated Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act when
> they refused
> to let a client, Lauren Klejmont, enter the office with Reicha, her German
> shepherd.
>
> Title III prohibits providers of public accommodations, including law 
> firms,
> from discriminating against disabled customers. Under Title III, 
> businesses
> that do not allow pets must make an exception for service animals.
>
> "The notion that a law firm and a partner in the firm would so flagrantly
> violate such a clear and well-established law, as was alleged in this 
> case,
> is
> disturbing," U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in
> a statement
> . "Of all people, lawyers should know better. Individuals with 
> disabilities
> are entitled to the same access to private businesses as everyone else, 
> and
> it should be understood loud and clear that we will not tolerate
> discriminatory conduct."
>
> According to the complaint in United States v. Larkin Axelrod, 
> 11-cv-08003,
> filed yesterday in federal court in White Plains, Ms. Klejmont suffers 
> from
> seizures and problems with balance and memory as a result of a spine and
> head injury. She has limited motor function and uses a cane and leg brace.
> She
> also has Reicha, who picks up and carries things for her, detects her
> seizures and helps her stand up when she falls, according to the 
> complaint.
>
> Ms. Klejmont hired Larkin Axelrod in 2007 to represent her in a personal
> injury suit. In January 2009, she went to the firm's Newburgh office to 
> meet
> with
> her attorneys, Mr. Ingrassia and another lawyer, Gerald J. Marino, who has
> since left the firm.
>
> The lawyers met her in the waiting room, but refused to let her inside 
> with
> Reicha and asked her to leave the dog outside, according to the suit.
>
> Ms. Klejmont explained that she needed the dog because of her disability,
> but the lawyers continued to insist that she could not bring the dog 
> inside,
> saying
> that Mr. Ingrassia was allergic to dogs. They also rejected her suggestion
> to hold the meeting in a conference room instead of in Mr. Ingrassia's
> office,
> the complaint said.
>
> After the encounter, Ms. Klejmont sent the firm a letter complaining of 
> her
> treatment.
>
> Mr. Ingrassia wrote back that he had not known that Ms. Klejmont had a
> service dog when he scheduled the meeting and could not have the dog in 
> his
> office
> because of his allergies. He said he would arrange to hold future meetings
> in a different room.
>
> Despite that promise,
> two letters
> from Mr. Marino in January 2010 show that the firm allegedly continued not
> to accommodate Ms. Klejmont's disability. Mr. Marino said he would meet 
> with
> Ms. Klejmont only if she did not bring Reicha, or if they met in the 
> firm's
> parking lot and Reicha stayed in Ms. Klejmont's car during the meeting,
> according
> to the complaint.
>
> Mr. Bharara is asking for an injunction requiring Larkin Axelrod to
> accommodate Ms. Klejmont's dog and other service animals, monetary damages
> to compensate
> Ms. Klejmont for the discrimination she experienced and a civil penalty.
>
> A spokesman for the law firm said it was reviewing the complaint and
> declined to comment.
>
> Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Byars represents the government. The 
> case
> has been assigned to Southern District Judge Vincent Bricceti.
>
> @|Brendan Pierson can be contacted at
> bpierson at alm.com.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------
> ----
>
> Copyright 2011. ALM Media Properties, LLC. All rights reserved.
>
> Here is the follow-up article that appeared in today's paper:
>
> New York Law Journal
> ALM Properties, Inc.
> Page printed from:
> New York Law Journal
>
> Firm Denies Discrimination Against Service Dog Owner
> Brendan Pierson
> New York Law Journal
> 11-10-2011
>
> An attorney with Larkin, Axelrod, Ingrassia & Tetenbaum, an Orange County
> law firm that was sued for refusing to allow a client to bring her service
> dog
> into its office, has said that it did not intend to discriminate against 
> the
> client and that one of its employees acted against firm policy in refusing
> to allow the dog inside.
>
> The lawsuit, Klejmont v. Larkin Axelrod Ingrassia & Tetenbaum, 
> 11-cv-08003,
> was filed in the federal court in White Plains on Tuesday by the Southern
> District
> U.S. Attorney on behalf of Lauren Klejmont, who retained the firm to
> represent her in a personal injury action
> (NYLJ, Nov. 9)
> . It also names one of the firm's partners, John Ingrassia, as a 
> defendant.
>
> The suit alleges that Mr. Ingrassia and Gerald J. Marino, a partner who 
> left
> the firm earlier this year, repeatedly refused to allow Ms. Klejmont to
> bring
> her dog into the office, in violation of Title III of the Americans with
> Disabilities Act, despite Mr. Ingrassia's written promise that the dog, a
> German
> shepherd named Reicha, would be accommodated.
>
> Ms. Klejmont claimed in her suit that she was told that Reicha was not
> permitted in Mr. Ingrassia's office because of his allergies, but the 
> lawyer
> said
> he would arrange to hold future meetings in a different room.
>
> James Burke, a lawyer at Larkin Axelrod, said that the firm's policy was 
> to
> accommodate disabilities, as shown by Mr. Ingrassia's written promise.
>
> "The subsequent refusal by an employee of the firm to meet with Ms. 
> Klejmont
> and her dog in our office was in contravention of the firm's stated 
> policy,
> was motivated by the employee's personal dog phobia, and is not properly
> attributable to the firm," he said in a statement.
>
> Mr. Burke said that after the matter was called to the firm's attention, 
> Ms.
> Klejmont "was invited to bring her dog to a meeting in the firm's office.
> She
> unfortunately declined to accept the offer. While the firm regrets that 
> its
> efforts to repair the relationship with Ms. Klejmont were unsuccessful, it
> acted in good faith to protect and preserve her legal rights."
>
> Mr. Burke declined in an interview to say which employee had the dog 
> phobia.
>
> The firm has 20 days from the filing of the suit to file an answer.
>
> @|Brendan Pierson can be contacted at
> bpierson at alm.com.
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------
> ----
>
> Copyright 2011. ALM Media Properties, LLC. All rights reserve
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