Appellate Court OKs Stadium-style Movie Seating; Cinemark, USA Inc. Wins ADA Case.

Entertainment Editors & Business Editors

PLANO, Texas--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--April 11, 2000

On April 6, 2000, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, sitting in New Orleans, reversed an El Paso district court's decision and rendered judgment in favor of Cinemark USA, Inc. in a lawsuit of first impression challenging whether the wheelchair seating placements in Cinemark's "stadium-style" movie theatres complied with the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Texas Labor Code.

The decision is expected to have a significant impact on public accommodations cases across the nation, including more than a dozen pending lawsuits against some of the country's largest movie theatre owners and operators including AMC, United Artists, Loew's and others.

"Stadium-style theaters, which mimic the seating configurations of typical sports stadiums, provide all patrons with unobstructed views over forward seated patrons and make every seat the best seat in town," says Randy Hester, Vice President of Marketing and Communications for Cinemark. "Stadium seating has changed the movie going experience for Americans. This case put stadium seating under attack, and we are pleased that the court's decision approved of our seating design," said Hester.

Mike Cavalier, Vice President and General Counsel at Cinemark, remarked that, "Cinemark is pleased to finally have court recognition that our stadium seating configurations comply with all disabilities laws. Cinemark was very careful in designing Tinseltown and had received four separate state and local governmental certifications on Tinseltown before the lawsuit was filed. This is a lawsuit that never should have happened."

Lee Roy Mitchell, Cinemark's Chief Executive Officer, said, "In response to customer preference for premium seating, Cinemark operates the most modern stadium style theatre circuit in the industry. We are pleased with this court approval of our stadium style theatres."

Laura Franze, of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, L.L.P, who was lead attorney for Cinemark at the trial and appellate levels of the case, said, "(t)he real issue in the case was one of fairness. Construction rules should not be changed after the fact. The court of appeals sent a message that builders such as Cinemark should be able to rely on the plain meaning of the disabilities laws and not be subjected to post-construction second-guessing in lawsuits. I expect this case to impact ADA public accommodations litigation nationwide."

The case had attracted nationwide attention in legal circles. The Department of Justice made an unusual appearance amicus curiae ("friend of the court") at the trial court level and also submitted briefs and oral argument at the Fifth Circuit level in favor of the plaintiffs groups suing Cinemark. Also appearing amicus curiae were the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO), both of whom submitted briefs in favor of Cinemark at the Appellate level. The theatres in question had been approved by state and local inspectors as being fully compliant with the Accessibility laws both before and after construction.

In ruling for Cinemark, the Fifth Circuit held that the Americans with Disabilities Act guidelines required that the theatres provide wheelchair-using patrons with unobstructed views of the screen from locations amidst general public seating, and that Cinemark's theatres clearly met these criteria. The Fifth Circuit decision counseled against post-construction additions to accessibility guidelines, and said that "requir(ing) district courts to interpret the ADA based upon the subjective and undoubtedly diverse preferences of disabled moviegoers" would lead to inconsistent and unjust decisions.

The company was represented by attorneys from the law firm of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, L.L.P., headed by partners Laura M. Franze and Brett Burns (Dallas Labor and Employment Section). Assisting were counsel Andrew Gould and Marcia Jackson, associates Rani Garcia and Richard Cortez (Dallas Labor and Employment Section), and partners Dan Joseph (Washington), Mike Lowenberg, Mary O'Connor, and counsel Jeff Goldfarb (Dallas) of the firm's Law and Appeals Practice Group.

Cinemark is one of the world's largest motion picture theatre operators with 257 theatres and 2,736 screens currently operating in the United States, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Equador, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Peru. The company, headquartered in Plano, Texas, has a Web site at www.cinemark.com.

Founded in 1945, Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, L.L.P., is a leading international law firm. Lead trial and appellate lawyer, Laura M. Franze from the Dallas office, is listed in the Best Lawyers in America (every edition since 1995) and is a seasoned trial lawyer and a frequent commentator on legal issues. Ms. Franze appeared for six years as a legal commentator on KXAS, "NBC5." She is the author of numerous legal articles and publications, including Texas Employment Law (James Publishing, 1998; updated, 1999).

Akin Gump numbers 900 lawyers with offices in Austin, Brussels, Dallas, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, New York, Philadelphia, Riyadh (affiliate), San Antonio and Washington. The firm has a diversified practice and represents regional, national and international clients in a wide range of areas, including antitrust; banking and financial institutions; bankruptcy, reorganization and creditors' rights; capital markets; communications; corporate and securities; employee benefits; energy; entertainment; environmental; estate planning and probate; food and drug; government contracts; health; insurance; intellectual property; international; investment management; labor and employment; litigation; mergers and acquisitions; privatization; project finance; public law and policy; real estate and finance; taxation; and technology. Web site at http://www.akingump.com