[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 18 (Thursday, February 2, 2017)]
[House]
[Page H918]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             THIDWICK BOOKS

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, Thidwick Books is a small, 865-square-
foot bookshop that has been in the same building since 1999, but now it 
is being forced to either close its doors forever or move away.
  Serial plaintiff Craig Yates has sued multiple other merchants, 
including Thidwick Books. He generally makes vague claims about the 
designs of retail stores and claims that they violate the Americans 
with Disabilities Act.
  These small businesses do not have the resources to contest unfounded 
lawsuits or, in many cases, even know what the alleged violations are. 
The businesses are told to either pay a settlement or get sued with 
further litigation. Oftentimes, small businesses choose to pay the 
extortion rather than to defend the expensive, unfounded drive-by 
lawsuit.
  The bipartisan bill, the ADA Education and Reform Act of 2017, 
improves access to public accommodations for the disability community 
while preventing well-meaning businessowners from falling victim to 
drive-by lawsuits.
  Mr. Speaker, the ADA was designed to improve access for the disabled, 
not to enrich unscrupulous lawyers and the plaintiffs.
  And that is just the way it is.

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