Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition v. Abercrombie & Fitch Co.

Abercrombie and Fitch Co. (Abercrombie) (defendant) built and maintained storefronts for its Hollister chain of stores. Two types of Hollister stores were built in the United States between 1993 and 2010, each with three sets of entrance doors. One type of Hollister store had all three entrances level with the surrounding mall floor, but the other design included a stepped porch for the central set of doors on the storefront. The porch housed mannequins and chairs for customers, and it was given the look of a Southern California surf shack. Patrons entering through the different sets of doors ended up in the same locations, regardless of the store design type. Because wheelchair users could not access the stepped porches, the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition (coalition) (plaintiff) filed Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) complaints with Abercrombie, but Abercrombie did not alter the porches. The coalition filed suit against Abercrombie for alleged violations of the ADA. The district court granted summary judgment for the coalition, finding that (1) the porch design violated the overarching goals of the ADA and (2) the porch was a space and entrance under the ADA and did not meet the official design standards of the Department of Justice (DOJ). The district court issued a permanent injunction forcing Abercrombie to bring its stores into compliance. Abercrombie appealed to the Tenth Circuit.