Section 19 Attorney Fees

• Library: Employment Discrimination 2008

The ADA provides that a court, in its discretion, may allow the prevailing party reasonable attorney fees. 42 U.S.C. § 12205. To qualify as a prevailing party, a plaintiff must obtain relief, on the merits, that directly benefits the plaintiff through an enforceable judgment, or a plaintiff must obtain comparable relief through
a consent decree or settlement. Dehne v. Med. Shoppe Int’l, Inc.,
261 F. Supp. 2d 1142, 1146 (E.D. Mo. 2003). A plaintiff prevails when actual relief on the merits of the claim materially alters the legal relationship between the parties by modifying the...