Robert Glen Myers v. Baileys’ In Midtown, Inc., For Profit Corporation d/b/a Rooster

Summary

The court denied Plaintiff Robert Glen Myers’s motion for final default judgment against Baileys’ In Midtown, Inc., holding that the complaint did not adequately state a claim under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The court concluded that, under its interpretation of 42 U.S.C. § 12181(7), a website is not itself a place of public accommodation and that the alleged website barriers did not deny access to the goods or services of Defendant’s physical restaurants. The complaint was dismissed, judgment was entered for Defendant, and Plaintiff’s request for attorney’s fees was denied.

Holdings

1. A website is not a place of public accommodation under Title III of the ADA because the statutory list of public accommodations and the ordinary meaning of the term "place" refer to physical locations.
2. The complaint did not state a Title III ADA claim because Plaintiff alleged barriers only to Defendant’s website and did not allege that he was denied access to the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of Defendant’s physical restaurants.
3. Default judgment was not warranted because default admitted well-pleaded factual allegations but did not establish a legally sufficient ADA cause of action.
4. Plaintiff was not entitled to attorneys’ fees or costs because he was not a prevailing party after the complaint was dismissed and no injunctive or other merits relief was awarded.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Plaintiff’s well-pleaded allegations stated a Title III ADA claim where the alleged barriers concerned only Defendant’s website and not its physical restaurants.
2. Whether Plaintiff was entitled to final default judgment after the Clerk entered default.
3. Whether Plaintiff was entitled to injunctive relief, attorneys’ fees, or costs.

Disposition

dismissed