Feldman v. Pro Football, Inc.
579 F.Supp.2d 697 (2008)
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Rule of Law:
Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires places of public accommodation, such as large sports stadiums, to furnish necessary auxiliary aids and services to ensure deaf and hard of hearing patrons have full and equal enjoyment of all aural information broadcast to the public, not just information deemed integral to the primary event.
Facts:
- Plaintiffs are deaf and hard of hearing fans of the Washington Redskins football team who have attended and plan to attend future home games at FedExField, which is owned and operated by Defendants Pro Football, Inc. and WFI Stadium, Inc.
- Prior to 2006, FedExField did not provide captioning for announcements made over its public address system, offering only assisted listening devices which were not effective for the Plaintiffs.
- Starting in June 2003, Plaintiff Shane Feldman began emailing the Redskins, requesting that public address system announcements, such as referee calls, plays, and emergency information, be captioned on the stadium's large video screens (JumboTrons).
- Between 2003 and 2004, Feldman and Redskins personnel exchanged further communications regarding potential captioning solutions.
- In February 2006, the National Association of the Deaf sent a letter to the Redskins' owner requesting that all announcements made over the public address system be captioned to comply with the ADA.
- Despite these multi-year requests from fans and advocacy groups, Defendants did not provide the requested captioning services.
Procedural Posture:
- On August 31, 2006, Plaintiffs filed suit against Defendants in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, alleging violations of Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
- After the lawsuit was filed, on October 15, 2006, Defendants began providing some captioning on LED ribbon boards and enabling closed captioning on some televisions in the stadium concourses.
- After a year of unsuccessful settlement discussions, Defendants filed an Answer to the complaint on August 15, 2007.
- Following discovery, Defendants filed a Motion for Summary Judgment, and Plaintiffs filed a Cross Motion for Summary Judgment.
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Issue:
Does Title III of the ADA require a professional football stadium to provide auxiliary aids and services, such as captioning, to ensure deaf and hard of hearing fans have equal access to all aural information broadcast over the public address system, including game-related announcements, music, and advertisements?
Opinions:
Majority - Alexander Williams, Jr.
Yes, Title III of the ADA requires the stadium to provide auxiliary aids and services for equal access to all aural information. The plain language of the statute mandates that individuals with disabilities receive 'full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations' of any place of public accommodation. The court found that the aural information provided to hearing fans—including music with lyrics, advertisements, and announcements—constitutes a 'good, service, privilege, or advantage' offered by the stadium. Therefore, under the ADA and its implementing regulations, the stadium must take necessary steps, such as providing auxiliary aids, to ensure 'effective communication' so that deaf and hard of hearing fans are not denied equal access to this information. Simply providing assistive listening devices that are useless to the plaintiffs does not satisfy this requirement.
Analysis:
This case establishes an important precedent by broadly interpreting the 'full and equal enjoyment' standard under Title III of the ADA for large entertainment venues. It clarifies that a public accommodation's duty is not limited to providing access to the main event itself, but extends to all ancillary services and information provided to the general public. This decision signals to stadiums, arenas, and concert halls that they must provide effective auxiliary aids for all aural content, including music and advertisements, to ensure an equivalent experience for deaf and hard of hearing patrons, significantly broadening the scope of accessibility requirements in such venues.
