Acheson Hotels v. Laufer (2023)
- Sam Shepherd
- Apr 7
- 3 min read
By Davina Haggar
Overview
Acheson Hotels v. Laufer (2023) was a U.S. Supreme Court case that addressed whether a "tester," disabled people who investigate compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), have the right to sue businesses for lack of disability information on their website (The Arc). Deborah Laufer, the plaintiff, was a disabled woman residing in Florida who identified as an ADA “tester.” While doing her job, she claimed that the Acheson Hotels' website lacked enough information on disability accessibility, so she filed a lawsuit against them. This court case analyzes whether Laufer can sue Acheson Hotels even though she never planned on staying at this hotel.
Summary
In 2020, Deborah Laufer filed a lawsuit against Acheson Hotels, specifically at the Maine branch. Laufer uses a wheelchair and has a visual impairment, which “occurs when an eye condition affects the visual system and its vision functions” (World Health Organization). Due to her disabilities, she qualified as a “tester,” where she researched and reviewed hotel websites to identify any violations against the ADA. Through ADA, businesses, including hotels, are required by the law to disclose sufficient information about their disability accessibility so that disabled individuals can ensure accessibility before their reservations. While many hotels include these details, some, like Acheson Hotels, fail to share necessary information with the public so that disabled individuals can choose a hotel that suits their needs.
After reviewing the Acheson Hotels website, Laufer sued them for failing to include legally required information about disability accessibility, including whether they have wide passageways for wheelchairs or accessible bathrooms for disabled individuals. This information was also unavailable on other third-party websites, which is required by the Reservation Rule under ADA (Southeast ADA Center). However, Acheson Hotels argued that Laufer had no right to sue them since she was only a “tester” and did not intend to stay at their hotel. Acheson Hotels claimed that Laufer lacked Article III standing, which requires the plaintiff to demonstrate that they have been directly harmed or impacted by the defendant’s actions and might be solved with a favorable court decision (U.S. Constitution). Acheson Hotels challenged Laufer’s suit by referring to Article III because she was not directly affected and did not plan on staying at the hotel.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit sided with Laufer, claiming that her position as a “tester” should not exclude her from the ADA’s requirements. This decision led to a circuit split, where two or more circuits in the U.S. Court of Appeals favor different parties on the same legal issue (Cornell Law School). While the First, Fourth, and Eleventh Circuits sided with Laufer, the Second, Fifth, and Tenth Circuits claimed she lacked standing (U.S. Supreme Court).
To resolve the circuit split, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in Acheson Hotels, LLC v. Laufer. However, after this decision, Laufer decided to voluntarily dismiss her case because the lawyer that was assigned to her had previously been suspended by the U.S. District Court of Maryland, among other factors. Her lawyer, Tristan Gillespie, was suspended for defrauding hotels by lying (U.S. Supreme Court).
Due to Laufer’s decision to dismiss this case, it has been mooted. The decision did not address whether Laufer, an ADA “tester,” has standing to sue Acheson Hotels if she never intended to stay there, leaving this case unresolved and the disagreements between the lower courts continuing.
Court Documents
Citations
“Acheson Hotels, LLC v. Deborah Laufer.” American Civil Liberties Union, www.aclu.org/cases/acheson-hotels-llc-v-deborah-laufer. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
The Arc. “Acheson Hotels, LLC V. Laufer.” The Arc, The Arc /wp-content/uploads/2019/07/ArcLogo_Color_Rev_PNG_WEB.png, 15 Aug. 2023, thearc.org/resource/acheson-hotels-llc-v-laufer/? Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
“Blindness and Vision Impairment.” World Health Organization, World Health Organization, 10 Aug. 2023, www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/blindness-and-visual-impairment. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
“Circuit Split.” Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, www.law.cornell.edu/wex/circuit_split#:~:text. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
“Laufer v. Acheson Hotels, LLC .” Southeast ADA Center, 5 Oct. 2022, adasoutheast.org/legal/court/laufer-v-acheson-hotels-llc/. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.
