Penalty for Refusing Service Dog

Despite the very strong protections provided by the Americans with Disabilities Act and California law, the sad reality is that disabled people are denied access in California every day because of their service animals. It is wrong, and it needs to stop.

The silver lining, if there is one, is that California law provides disabled persons a significant penalty to go after law-breaking businesses.

We always tell people that the main goal of filing a denial-of-access lawsuit is education. We certainly want the business to stop discriminating against service animals. We generally find that once faced with a lawsuit, a business quickly reforms is accessibility policies to ensure access to bona fide service animals in the future.

Unfortunately, once discrimination occurs, California law recognizes that harm is done. This is why California law provides a strong penalty that a disabled person can claim against the business in an accessibility lawsuit.

Here are some examples of what it means to refuse a service dog:

• Denying service altogether
• Asking too many questions about the service dog
• Demanding to see "paperwork," "ID cards," or "medical information"
• Redirecting the service dog and handler to another part of the business
• Harassing the service dog or its handler
• Demanding that the service dog wear a vest with certain words on it
• Singling out the service dog handler for less favorable treatment
• Touching, blocking, or otherwise interfering with the service dog's tasks
• Demanding extra compensation because of the presence of the service dog
• Charging "pet" fees or deposits (remember, it is not a pet!)

What is the fine?

In California, a disabled person can claim a penalty of no less than $4,000 for each time they are denied access to a business because of their service animal. In egregious cases, this penalty can be many times the $4,000 minimum.

Moreover, under California law, the business is usually required to pay the legal fees of the disabled person’s lawyer. This means that, in most cases, we can accept representation on a “contingency” basis so that our clients do not have to pay anything out-of-pocket to stand up against discrimination. This makes it very cost effective for a disabled person to stand up for their rights and fight back against service animal discrimination.

Don't Tolerate Service Animal Discrimiation

Service animal handlers can stand up for their rights and stop discrimination by speaking up. This is what we do. We proudly represent disabled individuals in court who are denied access to businesses because of their service animal. We hope one day to end service animal discrimination in California, but for now, we are doing what we can case-by-case to educate businesses about service animal rights.