From the Archives -- WSJ Interactive Edition
                  May 9, 2000

            Clint Eastwood Saddles Up
            For Disability-Act Showdown
            By JIM VANDEHEI
            Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

            WASHINGTON --Dirty Harry wants revenge, Washington style.
            This time, it is a gang of trial lawyers staring down Clint
            Eastwood, asking themselves about taking him on: "Do I feel
lucky?"
            These "sleazebag lawyers," the veteran actor says, his voice
            constricting, messed with the wrong guy when they
"frivolously" sued
            him and hundreds of other small-business owners for failing
to
            comply quickly enough with the Americans with Disabilities
Act.
            Mr. Eastwood, famed for his tough-guy cop and cowboy roles,
says he
            isn't against the ADA; his fight is with trial lawyers whom
he and
            some GOP lawmakers argue are "extorting" businesses with
unwarranted
            lawsuits.

            'I Won't Back Down'

            Now, Mr.Eastwood, whose Mission Ranch Hotel in Carmel,
Calif., has
            been sued for violating the ADA, is striking back with a
Washington
            lobbying campaign for new legislation to modify the law. "I
figure I
            won't back down because of all these people ... who can't
defend
            themselves," says the 69-year-old Mr. Eastwood. Well, "I
can, and
            they will be seeing me for a long, long time."
            Or as Dirty Harry dared: "Go ahead. Make my day."

            The ADA, which was signed into law in July 1990, prohibits
            discrimination against people with disabilities. Advocates
for the
            disabled loathe the idea of revisiting the act for fear
that, once
            opened, lawmakers will try to chip away at their wall of
protection.
            The Association of Trial Lawyers of America hasn't taken a
position
            on the legislation, but a spokesman doesn't rule out
supporting it.
            Mr. Eastwood, the former mayor of Carmel, is corralling
lawmakers to
            pass a bill, sponsored by GOP Rep. Mark Foley of Florida,
that would
            provide business owners 90 days to comply with the act's
access
            standards for the disabled. Under current law, lawyers can
charge
            Mr.Eastwood or any noncompliant business owner $275 per hour
of work
            from the day they file the suit; the disabled, however, are
            forbidden from collecting damages under the act.

            No Warning

            Critics say the lawyers, in many instances, provide these
businesses
            with no warning or time to make the requisite changes before
            slapping them with a lawsuit and charging fees. Rep. Foley
says some
            lawyers have exploited the ADA and targeted stretches of
small
            businesses, such as strip malls in South Florida.

            In Mr. Eastwood's case, a lawyer is asking for $577,000 in
fees. The
            lawyer and his disabled client want Mr.Eastwood to widen
some doors
            and make the bathrooms more accessible at his historic,
32-room
            hotel and restaurant.

            Mr. Eastwood says the legislation would do nothing to
rectify his
            situation, but it would prevent others from falling victim
to this
            "form of extortion" for a fistful of dollars. "It's a
racket," he
            argues. "The typical thing is to get someone who is disabled
in
            collusion with sleazebag lawyers, and they file suits."

            Paul Rein, the attorney suing Mr.Eastwood, says his client
suffers
            from muscular dystrophy and was unable to access several
areas at
            the Mission Ranch. Therefore, the changes must be made, he
says. "He
            has the same attitude as Dirty Harry: He does not want to
comply
            with the law and thinks he's above the law."

            Additional Time to Comply

            Many trial lawyers reject the need to change the ADA, Anthony
Brady,
            a lawyer from Camden, N.J., who has sued more than 100
companies for
            failing ADA compliance, concedes that some "greedy" lawyers
prey on
            small businesses that should be given additional time to
comply
            without charge.

            But, he opposes Mr. Foley's "silly" legislation because it
would
            provide large corporations the same 90-day protection.
Escalating
            legal fees, he says, is the only weapon the disabled have to
force
            big companies to accommodate them. If a few undeserving
small
            businesses get popped in the process, "it's the law," he
says.

            That is precisely the attitude that prompted Mr.Eastwood to
confront
            the trial lawyers. Already, Mr.Eastwood has volunteered to
ride
            shotgun with Mr. Foley and has helped persuade GOP Rep.
David Dreier
            of California, chairman of the powerful Rules Committee, to
come
            along. He has personally lobbied Leon Panetta, President
Clinton's
            former chief of staff, who heads a public-policy institute
at
            California State University at Monterey Bay. The House
Judiciary
            Committee will hold a hearing on the topic later this month,
and Mr.
            Eastwood wants to testify.

            The National Federation of Independent Business, the U.S.
Chamber of
            Commerce, the National Restaurant Association and the
International
            Council of Shopping Centers have joined the lobbying
campaign, too.
            With Mr.Eastwood on board, GOP lawmakers are pressing to put
the
            legislation on the House floor this year under a special
procedure
            called "suspension," which would prevent a lengthy floor
debate or
            amendments. "No question [that Mr. Eastwood ] is helpful,"
Rep.
            Foley says. "But I don't want to make this a sideshow of
            personalities."

            Persuading Advocates

            Indeed, Mr. Foley understands the sensitivity of modifying
the ADA,
            regardless of how meritorious he thinks his bill may be. He
says
            hundreds of small businesses in his Palm Beach district,
including
            one run by a disabled couple, were "victimized" by lawyers.
However,
            he refused to unveil his legislation until he persuaded
local
            advocates of the disabled to join him at a news conference.
            For this reason, Messrs. Foley and Eastwood want to recruit
a
            well-known politician who helped write the original law or a
            high-profile disabled person to work with them. Mr. Foley
has
            approached Democratic Sen. Max Cleland, of Georgia, a triple
            amputee, who is reviewing the bill.

            Bob Dole, the former GOP Senate majority leader who helped
write the
            ADA, and disabled actor Christopher Reeve will be approached
soon,
            he says.

            "We don 't want to turn this into a fight "with the
            disabled, Mr.Foley says. Meantime, Dirty Harry will be on
the
            warpath, hunting down victims and seeking justice. "I just
think for
            the benefit of everybody, they should cut out this racket
because
            these are morally corrupt people who are doing this."

            Write to Jim Vandehei at [log in to unmask]

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-----Original Message-----
From: Stephanie Thomas [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2000 6:26 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: RE: ADA in Jeopardy

Clint Eastwood is weighing in on the anti ADA side.  See Wall ST
Journal.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: I. S. Margolis [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2000 1:38 PM
> To: Stephanie Thomas
> Subject: RE: ADA in Jeopardy
>
>
> Here we go again!
>