Disabilities Rights Cases for Hearing Loss
Most cases are from: Department of Justice Disabilities Rights Cases, DoJ, Amer. with Disabilities Act Archives
Cases are provided for reference. Below is an evolving partial list; if you know of others, please let us know.
The most recent cases are at the top of each section.
Assistive Listening Systems
The settlement, which resolves a complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Justice that alleges that the Cinemark Enfield Square 12 is not physically accessible to persons with mobility disabilities, requires Cinemark to add ADA-compliant signage at exits and auditoriums, provide an accessible dining surface in the concession area, and acquire more receivers to use with its assistive listening system. The settlement also requires Cinemark to make numerous changes in the bathrooms, such as moving grab bars, removing a step up at a threshold, and making a bathroom door easier to open.
Few agencies use information kiosks, point-of-sale card reading machines, interactive electronic building directories, or other types of ‘information transaction machines,’ also called ‘ITMs.’ Fifty-nine of the 81 agencies reported that they do not use ITMs of any kind.
8. Is there a headphone jack to enable the user to use an assistive listening system to access audible information?
These 2 questions focus on an ITM’s usability for persons who are deaf or hard of hearing. Where a user cannot hear, the ITM should provide the user with simultaneous visual cues and information for all sound cues and audible information. As the Trace Guidelines state:
Any sounds that a device makes can be shown visually, for example by making a display or indicator light flash when a sound is made. Spoken text and sounds can be shown in “caption” form, enabling someone who cannot hear at all to have access to the same information as people who can easily hear.
Users who are hard of hearing may also benefit from visual information and cues, but may not be completely excluded from a lack of visual information and cues (such as where he or she is able to adequately amplify the volume). A “no” answer to Question 7 indicates that the ITM likely excludes users who are deaf and may adversely affect those who are hard of hearing.
In 18% (15 of 82) of the surveys, components indicated that the ITMs do not provide visual cues and information corresponding to sound cues and audible information. See Table 8.
Users who are hard of hearing can often benefit from audible cues and information if they are provided with a tailored means of listening. One important way to accomplish this task is by providing a standard headphone jack, which permits users to use standard headphones or make use of the T-switch(7) technology that is built in to many hearing aids.(8) In addition to amplification, providing a standard headphone jack can assist people who are hard of hearing by giving them an alternative that minimizes distracting background noises.
Installation of a standard headphone jack also provides a private means of listening for people who use audio output, such as those who are blind or who have low vision. For instance, a blind person who uses an ATM may wish to maintain his or her privacy when the ATM audibly “displays” the amount of cash he or she is withdrawing, or account balance information.
A “no” answer to Question 8 indicates that the ITM surveyed contains a barrier to users who are hard of hearing and to those who use audible output and would have a lesser degree of privacy if headphone jacks were not provided. In 71% (58 of 82) of the surveys, components indicated that the ITMs are not equipped with standard headphone jacks. See Table 9.
Under the settlement agreement, the museum, which operates facilities in Palm Springs and Palm Desert, will provide equipment and services free of charge to ensure that people who are deaf or hard of hearing have full and equal enjoyment of all of the Museum’s exhibits, programs and activities in each of its locations.
Under the settlement agreement, the museum will provide, in general:
- Properly functioning assistive-listening devices;
Advertisement of the availability of auxiliary aids and services;
Designation of an ADA Compliance Officer;
Palm Springs Art Museum Agrees to Comply With ADA by Improving Access for People Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
- Kanawha-Charleston Board of Health, First Floor Conference Room. The conference room is inaccessible to people with hearing impairments because there is no permanent or portable ALS available. Provide a permanently installed assistive listening system (ALS) or a portable ALS with an adequate number of electrical outlets or other supplementary wiring necessary to support a portable assistive listening system. Also provide 2 for use by the general public and signage indicating their availability. 28 C.F.R. § 35.160. Standards §§ 4.30, 4.33.
- Kanawha County Courthouse, Courtroom 4. The courtrooms are inaccessible to persons with hearing impairments because, although they have fixed seats and accommodate at least 50 persons, there are no assistive listening systems for persons who are hard of hearing. Provide a permanently installed assistive listening system (ALS) or a portable ALS with an adequate number of electrical outlets or other supplementary wiring necessary to support a portable assistive listening system. Also provide 2 receivers as required by Section 4.1.3(19)(b) for use by the general public and signage indicating their availability. 28 C.F.R. § 35.160, Standards §§ 4.1.3(19)(b), 4.30, 4.33.
Providing assistive listening devices for patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing in the Newseum’s 15 theaters, and providing captioning and other auxiliary aids and services throughout its more than 20 galleries of exhibitions and interactive programs;
Today’s out-of-court settlement resolves a compliance review during which the Department found violations of the ADA Standards for Accessible Design in newly constructed buildings, as well as barriers to existing facilities and elements such as doors, restrooms, signage, entrances, seating and assistive listening devices in assembly spaces, and exterior circulation routes. The college, located in Colorado Springs, Colo., has agreed to involve the college community in preparing a plan under which it will make alterations to its facilities within six years and relocate certain types of services and programs to accessible facilities with prior notice. The agreement addresses a wide variety of services and facilities, including classroom and administrative buildings, housing, libraries, access between facilities, athletic and performance areas, directional signage, and emergency preparedness.
*Provide assistive listening systems and devices for people with hearing impairments in lecture halls, meeting rooms, auditoria, and other assembly areas.
Justice Department Announces Settlement with Colorado College
to Increase Access to People with Disabilities
11. Crown Theaters agrees that by August 30, 1999, it will:
A. provide 27 receivers for the assistive listening systems at Crown Cine Theater (equal in number to at least two percent of its 1,074 seats). Because Crown theaters has 15, only 12 more are required in all motion picture theater auditoriums where alterations have not been made to an audio-amplification system since January 26, 1992;
B. ensure that at least one of the receivers in each auditorium shall have a neck loop coupling device, for a total of three.
Employee Training and Customer Service
14. Crown Theaters shall take all steps necessary, which may include providing staff training, to ensure that appropriate staff at all theaters:
A. are informed of the availability of assistive listening systems;
B. know where receivers are located on the premises, so that requests for them can be honored promptly; and
C. are familiar with how the assistive listening systems operate, so that they are able to provide basic instruction to customers who are unfamiliar with them, respond to customer questions or complaints, including inquiries by telephone, and conduct testing as required by paragraph 18(A).
Auxiliary Aids and Services
Various types of communication aids – known as “auxiliary aids and services” – are used to communicate with people who are deaf or hard of hearing. These include use of gestures or visual aids to supplement oral communication; an exchange of written notes; use of a computer or typewriter; use of assistive listening devices (to amplify sound for persons who are hard of hearing); or use of qualified oral or sign language interpreters.
2. The type of aid that will be required for effective communication will depend on the individual’s usual method of communication, and the nature, importance, and duration of the communication at issue.
3. In many circumstances, oral communication supplemented by gestures and visual aids, an exchange of written notes, use of a computer or typewriter, or use of an assistive listening device may be effective. In other circumstances, qualified sign language or oral interpreters, are needed to communicate effectively with persons who are deaf or hard of hearing, The more lengthy, complex, and important the communication, the more likely it is that a qualified interpreter will be required for effective communication with a person whose primary means of communication is sign language or speech reading. For example:
4. To serve each individual effectively, primary consideration should be given to the communication aid or service that works best for that person. Officers must ask persons who are deaf or hard of hearing what type of auxiliary aid or service they need. Officers must defer to those expressed choices, unless there is another equally effective way of communicating, given the circumstances, length, complexity, and importance of the communication, as well as the communication skills of the person who is deaf or hard of hearing.
- Auxiliary Aids and Services. Angeles shall furnish appropriate auxiliary aids and services, free of charge, when necessary to ensure effective communication with individuals with disabilities and their companions, and shall take all reasonable steps that may be necessary to ensure that no individual with a disability is excluded, denied services, or segregated because of the absence of auxiliary aids and services unless Angeles can demonstrate that taking those steps would fundamentally alter the nature of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations it offers or would result in an undue burden, i.e., significant difficulty or expense.
- DEFINITIONS. The term “auxiliary aids and services” includes qualified interpreters on-site or through video remote interpreting (VRI) services; notetakers; real-time computer-aided transcription services; written materials; exchange of written notes; telephone handset amplifiers; assistive listening devices; assistive listening systems; telephones compatible with hearing aids; closed caption decoders; open and closed captioning, including real-time captioning; voice, text, and video-based telecommunications products and systems, including text telephones (TTYs), videophones, and captioned telephones, or equally effective telecommunications devices; videotext displays; accessible electronic and information technology; or other effective methods of making aurally delivered information available to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. 28 C.F.R. § 36.303(b)(1).
Following this investigation, the United States determined that PPD engages in discriminatory practices that deny individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing with full and equal opportunities to participate in and benefit from PPD’s programs, services, and activities, including by:
a. Failing to take appropriate steps to ensure that communication with individuals with disabilities is as effective as communication with others;
b. Failing to provide auxiliary aids and services necessary to ensure effective communication with individuals who are deaf;
c. Failing to give primary consideration to an individual’s requested auxiliary aid or service of choice and failing to provide an equally effective alternative;
e. Failing to sufficiently train PPD staff and officers on how to assess the need for auxiliary aids and services and to secure auxiliary aids and services; and
—————-ADA OBLIGATIONS AND ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN BY THE CITY AND PPD
- ADA Coordinator. Effective immediately, PPD will designate at least one employee to coordinate its efforts to comply with and carry out its responsibilities under the ADA and this Agreement (ADA Coordinator for Law Enforcement).
- Notice of Rights. Effective immediately, at all police stations and other PPD facilities at which law enforcement personnel are reasonably anticipated to engage with members of the public, PPD will post conspicuous signs in public areas, booking and holding areas, and on www.phila.gov and www.phillypolice.com, advising the public of the availability of appropriate auxiliary aids and services. “To ensure effective communication with individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind, PPD will provide appropriate auxiliary aids and services, such as qualified sign language, oral, or tactile interpreters; videophones; and TTYs, free of charge. Please ask for assistance by contacting PPD’s ADA Coordinator for Law Enforcement, [name and full contact information].” The posted signs will include the following: The International Symbol for Hearing Loss, the International Symbol for TTYs, and a symbol to indicate the availability of sign language interpreters:
The type of aid or service provided will depend on the individual’s usual method of communication, and the nature, importance, and duration of the communication at issue. In some circumstances, oral communication
supplemented by gestures and visual aids, an exchange of written notes, use of a computer, or use of an assistive listening device may be effective. In other circumstances, qualified sign language or oral interpreters are needed to communicate effectively with persons who are deaf or hard of hearing.
19. PPD will maintain written records of all auxiliary aids or services or reasonable modifications requested by or provided to individuals with disabilities for the duration of this Agreement.
22. At least once every year, PPD will request community input from the public about disability-related issues, including whether individuals with disabilities receive auxiliary aids or services necessary for effective communication.
25. This Agreement will remain in effect for three (3) years.
Attachment A
Attachment B
Model Communication Assessment Form
SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA AND THE PHILADELPHIA POLICE DEPARTMENT
The term “auxiliary aids and services” includes qualified interpreters on-site or through video remote interpreting (VRI) services; notetakers; real-time computer-aided transcription services; written materials; exchange of written notes; telephone handset amplifiers; assistive listening devices; assistive listening systems; telephones compatible with hearing aids; closed caption decoders; open and closed captioning, including real·time captioning; voice, text, and video-based telecommunications products and systems, including text telephones (Tl’Ys), videophones, and captioned telephones, or equally effective telecommunications devices; vldeotext displays; accessible electronic and information technology; or other effective methods of making aurally delivered information available to individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. 28 C.F.R. § 36.303(b)(l).
Notice to Community
33. Pglicy Statement. Within ninety (90) days of the entry of this Agreement, the Hospitals shall post and maintain signs of conspicuous size and print at all of the Hospitals’ admitting stations, the emergency department, a,nd wherever a Patient’s Bill of Rights is required by law to .be posted. Such signs shall be to the following effect: Sign language and oral interpreters, TTYs, and other auxiliary aids and services are available free of charge to people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. For assistance, please contact any Hospital Personnel or the Information Office at ______ (.voice/TTY), room_.
These signs will. include the international symbols for “interpreters” and ‘TIYs.”
34. Website. The Hospitals will include on their websites the policy statement described in paragraph 33, above.
35. Patient Handbook. The Hospitals will include in all future printings of their Patient Handbooks (or equivalent) and all similar publications a statement to the following effect:
To ensure effective communication with Patients and their Companions who are deaf or bard-of-hearing, we provide appropriate auxiliary aids and services free of charge, such as: sign language and oral interpreters, video remote interpreting services, TTY s, note takers, written materials, telephone handset amplifiers, assistive listening devices and systems, telephones compatible with hearing aids, televisions with caption capability or closed caption decoders, and open and closed captioning of most Hospitals’ programs.
Please ask your nurse or other Hospital Personnel for assistance, or contact the Information Office at (voice or TTY), room _______ .
The Hospitals will also include in their Patient Handbooks a description of their
complaint resolution mechanism.
Exhibit A
Model Communication Assessment Form
- Provide auxiliary aids and services, including qualified sign language interpreters, to persons who are deaf or hard of hearing when necessary to ensure effective communication of its tax preparation services, programs and courses;
- Adopt and enforce a policy on effective communication with individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing for all H&R Block offices nationwide, post the policy on its websites and in its employee manuals, and distribute the policy to current and new employees and contractors;
- Post and maintain in a conspicuous location in all reception areas of H&R Block offices a notice stating that individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing have a right under the ADA to request a sign language or oral interpreter or other form of auxiliary aid or service if needed;
WDW agrees to continue to provide those auxiliary aids and services necessary for deaf and hearing-impaired individuals to enjoy the programs and services at the Walt Disney World Resort, in accordance with 42 U.S.C. ｧ 12182(b)(2)(A)(iii). While methods of complying with the ADA will differ depending upon the particular attraction, such methods include, but are not limited to: captioning; sign language interpreters; assistive listening systems (ALS’s); and written aids. This Agreement provides for specific auxiliary aids for each attraction at Walt Disney World as identified in Attachment A, which is incorporated in this Agreement by reference. WDW’s efforts to develop other effective auxiliary aids will continue to evolve.
Other complaints related to hearing loss
Kontnik is deaf in his left ear and hard of hearing in his right. According to a press release Kontnik alleged the court unlawfully excluded him from being a juror because of his disability, which he and the CCDC believe is in violation of the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act. The lawsuit contends the county court didn’t follow appropriate rules regarding the dismissal of a qualified juror in violation of CADA.
- Kontnik, LinkedIn January 2024. An disappointing update on the court case regarding jury service and having hearing loss
- CBS news, Denver 4. February 15, 2023. Hearing impaired Denver lawyer’s lawsuit over jury duty moves forward
- Law Week Colorado. September 14, 2022. Denver Attorney Files Lawsuit Alleging Discrimination in Denver County Court
- CCDC Summary. Kontnik et al. v. Denver County Court, 2022CV032599
Accordingly, the court ordered the theatre to provide captioning for all theatrical performances upon request with two weeks’ notice. The court also – with no discussion – ordered the theatre to publicize the availability of captioning, provide a means to request captioning, and provide a method of buying tickets through non-telephonic means, including e-mail.
The court also found that the theatre had failed to meet its obligation to provide auxiliary aids and services to ensure effective communication with the plaintiff.
Theatre Must Provide Captioning For All Live Performances Says Federal Judge
The United States alleges that the ISP is engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination by maintaining a policy whereby applicants for cadet job vacancies are automatically excluded from consideration for employment if the applicant:
(a) has a hearing loss and was not permited the use of assistive devices, such as a hearing aids, in the cadet medical screening, or
(b) has diabetes mellitus which is controlled by the use of an insulin pump.
The ISP agrees that it will:
(a) eliminate its policy of automatically excluding applicants for cadet jobs who use assistive devices such as hearing aids to attenuate hearing loss;
(b) implement a hiring policy whereby cadet job applicants who use hearing aids are individually assessed to determine their eligibility for hiring; and