§ 425.55.Construction-Related Accessibility Claims; High-Frequency Litigant Defined

Title 6. Of the Pleadings In Civil Actions · Chapter 2. Pleadings Demanding Relief · Article 1. General Provisions · Enacted 2015 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026

In one sentenceSection 425.55 defines a high-frequency litigant as a plaintiff who has filed ten or more construction-related accessibility complaints, or an attorney who has represented ten or more such plaintiffs, within the preceding 12 months, subject to specified exclusions and a carve-out for legal aid attorneys.

Full Text of § 425.55

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(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(1) Protection of the civil rights of persons with disabilities is of the utmost importance to this state, and private enforcement is the essential means of achieving that goal, as the law has been designed.

(2) According to information from the California Commission on Disability Access, more than one-half, or 54 percent, of all construction-related accessibility complaints filed between 2012 and 2014 were filed by two law firms. Forty-six percent of all complaints were filed by a total of 14 parties. Therefore, a very small number of plaintiffs have filed a disproportionately large number of the construction-related accessibility claims in the state, from 70 to 300 lawsuits each year. Moreover, these lawsuits are frequently filed against small businesses on the basis of boilerplate complaints, apparently seeking quick cash settlements rather than correction of the accessibility violation. This practice unfairly taints the reputation of other innocent disabled consumers who are merely trying to go about their daily lives accessing public accommodations as they are entitled to have full and equal access under the state's Unruh Civil Rights Act (Section 51 of the Civil Code) and the federal Americans with Disability Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-336).

(3) Therefore, given these special and unique circumstances, the provisions of this section are warranted for this limited group of plaintiffs.

(b) For the purposes of this article, "high-frequency litigant" means a person, except as specified in paragraph (3), who utilizes court resources in actions arising from alleged construction-related access violations at such a high level that it is appropriate that additional safeguards apply so as to ensure that the claims are warranted. A "high-frequency litigant" means one or more of the following:

(1) A plaintiff who has filed 10 or more complaints alleging a construction-related accessibility violation within the 12-month period immediately preceding the filing of the current complaint alleging a construction-related accessibility violation.

(2) An attorney who has represented as attorney of record 10 or more high-frequency litigant plaintiffs in actions that were resolved within the 12-month period immediately preceding the filing of the current complaint alleging a construction-related accessibility violation, excluding all of the following actions:

(A) An action in which an early evaluation conference was held pursuant to Section 55.54 of the Civil Code.

(B) An action in which judgment was entered in favor of the plaintiff.

(C) An action in which the construction-related accessibility violations alleged in the complaint were remedied in whole or in part, or a favorable result was achieved, after the plaintiff filed a complaint or provided a demand letter, as defined in Section 55.3 of the Civil Code.

(3) This section does not apply to an attorney employed or retained by a qualified legal services project or a qualified support center, as defined in Section 6213 of the Business and Professions Code, when acting within the scope of employment to represent a client in asserting a construction-related accessibility claim, or the client in such a case.

End

Plain-English Summary

Section 425.55 supplies the definition that § 425.50's extra disclosure requirements depend on. Subdivision (a) states the Legislature's findings behind the definition: a small number of plaintiffs and law firms filed a disproportionate share of construction-related accessibility complaints in California between 2012 and 2014, often using boilerplate allegations against small businesses in pursuit of quick settlements rather than actual correction of access barriers.

Subdivision (b) sets the threshold. A plaintiff who has filed 10 or more construction-related accessibility complaints in the 12 months before filing the current one is a high-frequency litigant. So is an attorney who has served as attorney of record for 10 or more high-frequency litigant plaintiffs in actions resolved within that same 12-month window — but three categories of resolved actions do not count toward that total: cases with an early evaluation conference under Civil Code § 55.54, cases resulting in a judgment for the plaintiff, and cases where the alleged violations were remedied, in whole or part, or a favorable result was achieved after the complaint or a demand letter was served.

Subdivision (b)(3) carves out attorneys employed by qualified legal services projects or qualified support centers, as defined in Business and Professions Code § 6213, when acting within the scope of that employment — along with their clients — so that legal aid representation of disability-rights plaintiffs does not trigger the high-frequency litigant label or its added disclosure burdens.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does it take to be a high-frequency litigant in California?

Section 425.55(b)(1) sets the threshold at 10 or more construction-related accessibility complaints filed within the 12 months immediately preceding the current complaint.

Can an attorney be a high-frequency litigant, not just a plaintiff?

Yes. Section 425.55(b)(2) applies the label to an attorney who has represented 10 or more high-frequency litigant plaintiffs in actions resolved within the preceding 12 months, subject to the exclusions listed in that paragraph.

Do all resolved cases count toward the attorney's 10-case threshold?

No. Section 425.55(b)(2) excludes cases with an early evaluation conference under Civil Code § 55.54, cases resulting in a judgment for the plaintiff, and cases where the violations were remedied or a favorable result was reached after the complaint or a demand letter.

Are legal aid attorneys subject to the high-frequency litigant rules?

No. Section 425.55(b)(3) exempts attorneys employed by a qualified legal services project or qualified support center, as defined in Business and Professions Code § 6213, and their clients, when acting within the scope of that employment.

Amendment History

Added by Stats 2015 ch 755 (AB 1521),s 6, eff. 10/10/2015.

Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from the California Legislative Information. Enacted by the California Legislature. Last verified July 28, 2026. · Official source

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