The Building Was Brand New. Permitted. Inspected. And Still Hit With an ADA Lawsuit.

A contractor called me after a project he built got hit with an ADA lawsuit.

The building was brand new. Permitted. Inspected. Signed off.

And still, a plaintiff's attorney found six violations that cost his client over $30,000 to settle.

He asked me: how does that even happen?

Here is how.

Plan Check Is Not the Same as Accessibility Compliance

Most construction documents are drawn for building department approval — not for true accessibility compliance. Those are not the same thing.

Plan checkers are overworked. They are reviewing for code compliance across every discipline — structural, mechanical, electrical, fire, energy, and accessibility — on a compressed timeline. Inspectors are not CASps. And by the time the building is occupied, nobody is looking at door hardware heights, counter reach ranges, or parking space slopes with a digital level.

The details that generate lawsuits are not the obvious ones. They are:

- A door hardware latch that is two inches too high

- A counter that exceeds the maximum reach range by a fraction

- A parking access aisle with a 2.3% cross-slope instead of 2.0%

- A restroom grab bar mounted an inch outside the required zone

These do not fail plan check. They fail a CASp inspection. And they absolutely show up in demand letters.

The Gap I Fill

When contractors and developers bring me in early — not as an afterthought, but as part of the team — here is what changes:

Construction documents are drawn to actually comply, not just pass plan check. The review is done by someone who knows the difference between the two.

A CASp-certified review gives the owner legal protection under California law if a complaint is ever filed after occupancy.

Fewer RFIs, fewer change orders, and zero accessibility surprises at the finish line.

I am not here to slow your project down. I am here to make sure it does not come back to haunt you.

If you are a contractor or developer working on commercial projects in California, let's connect. The conversation is free. The lawsuit is not.

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