Case: United States v. Fitness International, LLC d/b/a LA Fitness

8:24-cv-02172 | U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

Filed Date: Oct. 8, 2024

Case Ongoing

Clearinghouse coding complete

Case Summary

This was a case about a national gym allegedly failing to provide adequate accommodations for individuals with physical disabilities.  On October 8, 2024, the United States Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division and Disability Rights Section brought this action against Fitness International, LLC d/b/a LA Fitness in the  U.S. District Court for the Central District of California before District Judge Stephen V. Wilson.  The DOJ (the government) sued LA Fitness to enforce Title III of the …

This was a case about a national gym allegedly failing to provide adequate accommodations for individuals with physical disabilities. 

On October 8, 2024, the United States Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division and Disability Rights Section brought this action against Fitness International, LLC d/b/a LA Fitness in the  U.S. District Court for the Central District of California before District Judge Stephen V. Wilson. 

The DOJ (the government) sued LA Fitness to enforce Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The complaint alleged that Fitness International, the largest chain of owner operated gym and fitness club facilities in the United States, operated inaccessible facilities in violation of the ADA. The allegations included the following:

  • inoperable pool and jacuzzi lifts at the LA Fitness locations;
  • broken elevators making access to the building completely inaccessible; and
  • general barriers to accessing various areas of the building.

The government alleges that these instances demonstrate that the defendant has engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination under the ADA, or that LA Fitness has discriminated against individuals with disabilities in a way that the Attorney General has determined raises an issue of general public importance. The government requested a jury trial, declaratory relief, injunctive relief, and compensatory damages. 

LA Fitness filed a motion to dismiss on December 10, 2024, arguing that the incidents cited in the complaint are disconnected and do not reflect a pattern of failure to accommodate. Following a hearing in February, Judge Wilson issued an order on June 6, 2025 granting LA Fitness’s motion to dismiss without prejudice. The court held that four allegations the government raised failed to allow the Court to infer a pattern or practice of discrimination, and that the government failed to provide adequate notice for its claim that LA Fitness’s discrimination raises an issue of “general public importance.” The government was given fourteen days to file an amended complaint, but did not do so. 

On July 2, 2025, Judge Wilson ordered the government to show cause in writing about why the action should not be dismissed. The next day, the government filed a notice of voluntary dismissal without prejudice, and the case was dismissed in its entirety.  

Summary Authors

Lauren Lewis (4/1/2025)

Amanda Gao (3/24/2026)

People

For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69236042/parties/united-states-v-fitness-international-llc-dba-la-fitness/


Judge(s)
Attorney for Plaintiff

Barragan, Matthew Jimenez (California)

Bobrow, Anna (California)

Chen, Margaret M. (California)

Dutcher, Katherine (California)

Guterman, Rebecca (California)

Attorney for Defendant

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Documents in the Clearinghouse

Document
1

8:24-cv-02172

Complaint

Oct. 8, 2024

Oct. 8, 2024

Complaint
35

8:24-cv-02172

Dismiss Case

June 6, 2025

June 6, 2025

38

8:24-cv-02172

Voluntary Dismissal of a Case (Pursuant to FRCP 41a (1))

July 3, 2025

July 3, 2025

Docket

See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69236042/united-states-v-fitness-international-llc-dba-la-fitness/

Last updated March 24, 2026, 11:14 a.m.

ECF Number Description Date Link Date / Link
1

COMPLAINT No Fee Required - US Government, filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Attorney Matthew Jimenez Barragan added to party United States of America(pty:pla))(Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/08/2024)

Oct. 8, 2024

Oct. 8, 2024

Clearinghouse
2

CIVIL COVER SHEET filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/08/2024)

Oct. 8, 2024

Oct. 8, 2024

RECAP
3

Request for Clerk to Issue Summons on Complaint (Attorney Civil Case Opening) 1, Civil Cover Sheet (CV-71) 2 filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/08/2024)

Oct. 8, 2024

Oct. 8, 2024

4

NOTICE OF ASSIGNMENT to District Judge Stephen V. Wilson and Magistrate Judge Karen E. Scott. (jtil) (Entered: 10/10/2024)

Oct. 10, 2024

Oct. 10, 2024

5

NOTICE TO PARTIES OF COURT-DIRECTED ADR PROGRAM filed. (jtil) (Entered: 10/10/2024)

Oct. 10, 2024

Oct. 10, 2024

6

Notice to Counsel Re Consent to Proceed Before a United States Magistrate Judge. (jtil) (Entered: 10/10/2024)

Oct. 10, 2024

Oct. 10, 2024

7

21 DAY Summons Issued re Complaint (Attorney Civil Case Opening) 1 as to Defendants Fitness International, LLC. (jtil) (Entered: 10/11/2024)

Oct. 11, 2024

Oct. 11, 2024

8

WAIVER OF SERVICE Returned Executed filed by Plaintiff United States of America. upon Fitness International, LLC waiver sent by Plaintiff on 10/11/2024, answer due 12/10/2024. Waiver of Service signed by Fitness International, LLC d/b/a LA Fitness. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/17/2024)

Oct. 17, 2024

Oct. 17, 2024

9

PROOF OF SERVICE filed by Plaintiff United States of America, served on 10/11/2024. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/24/2024)

Oct. 24, 2024

Oct. 24, 2024

10

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Matthew Jimenez Barragan counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding Cheryl Rost as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/24/2024)

Oct. 24, 2024

Oct. 24, 2024

11

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Matthew Jimenez Barragan counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding Felicia Sadler as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/24/2024)

Oct. 24, 2024

Oct. 24, 2024

12

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Matthew Jimenez Barragan counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding Nabina Sinha as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/24/2024)

Oct. 24, 2024

Oct. 24, 2024

13

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Matthew Jimenez Barragan counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding Rebecca Guterman as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 10/24/2024)

Oct. 24, 2024

Oct. 24, 2024

14

NEW CASE ORDER upon filing of the complaint by Judge Stephen V. Wilson. (pc) (Entered: 10/31/2024)

Oct. 31, 2024

Oct. 31, 2024

15

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Margaret Ming Chen counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding Margaret M. Chen as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Attorney Margaret Ming Chen added to party United States of America(pty:pla))(Chen, Margaret) (Entered: 11/21/2024)

Nov. 21, 2024

Nov. 21, 2024

16

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Margaret Ming Chen counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding Anna Bobrow as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Chen, Margaret) (Entered: 11/21/2024)

Nov. 21, 2024

Nov. 21, 2024

17

STIPULATION for Hearing re BRIEFING SCHEDULE AND HEARING DATE ON DEFENDANTS MOTION TO DISMISS filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Attachments: # 1 Declaration of Matthew J. Barragan, # 2 Proposed Order)(Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 12/09/2024)

Dec. 9, 2024

Dec. 9, 2024

18

NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION to Dismiss Case filed by Defendant Fitness International, LLC. Motion set for hearing on 2/3/2025 at 01:30 PM before Judge Stephen V. Wilson. (Attorney Bryan A. Merryman added to party Fitness International, LLC(pty:dft)) (Merryman, Bryan) (Entered: 12/10/2024)

Dec. 10, 2024

Dec. 10, 2024

RECAP
19

REQUEST of Non-Resident Attorney Melissa L. Taylormoore to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Defendant Fitness International, LLC (Pro Hac Vice Fee - $500 Fee Paid, Receipt No. ACACDC-38752364) filed by Defendant Fitness International, LLC. (Attachments: # 1 Proposed Order) (Merryman, Bryan) (Entered: 12/13/2024)

Dec. 13, 2024

Dec. 13, 2024

20

ORDER by Judge Stephen V. Wilson: granting 19 Non-Resident Attorney Melissa L. Taylormoore APPLICATION to Appear Pro Hac Vice on behalf of Defendant Fitness International, LLC, designating Bryan A. Merryman as local counsel. THERE IS NO PDF DOCUMENT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS ENTRY (sbou) (Entered: 12/17/2024)

Dec. 17, 2024

Dec. 17, 2024

21

ORDER by Judge Stephen V. Wilson. Having reviewed the Stipulation filed by the parties, and for good cause shown, IT IS ORDERED that: 1. Defendant's Motion to Dismiss will be noticed for hearing on Monday, February 3, 2025, at 1:30 p.m. 2. The deadline for the United States to file an opposition to the Motion to Dismiss is January 6, 2025. 3. The deadline for Defendant to file a reply in support of the Motion to Dismiss is January 17, 2025. (aco) (Entered: 12/17/2024)

Dec. 17, 2024

Dec. 17, 2024

Appear Pro Hac Vice

Dec. 17, 2024

Dec. 17, 2024

22

OPPOSITION to NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION to Dismiss Case 18 filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Bobrow, Anna) (Entered: 01/06/2025)

Jan. 6, 2025

Jan. 6, 2025

23

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Cheryl Rost counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Cheryl Rost is no longer counsel of record for the aforementioned party in this case for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by plaintiff Cheryl Rost. (Rost, Cheryl) (Entered: 01/17/2025)

Jan. 17, 2025

Jan. 17, 2025

24

REPLY in support of NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION to Dismiss Case 18 filed by Defendant Fitness International, LLC. (Merryman, Bryan) (Entered: 01/17/2025)

Jan. 17, 2025

Jan. 17, 2025

25

MINUTES OF Motion Hearing held before Judge Stephen V. Wilson re: MOTION to Dismiss Case filed by Defendant 18 - The motion is submitted. Attorney for Plaintiff(s): Anna Bobrow DOJ, Margaret M. Chen DOJ, Nabina Sinha DOJ. Attorney for Defendant(s): Bryan A. Merryman, Melissa Taylormoore. Courtroom Deputy: Paul M. Cruz. Time in Court: 35 mins. Court Reporter: Laura Elias. (pc) (Entered: 02/05/2025)

Feb. 3, 2025

Feb. 3, 2025

Motion Hearing

Feb. 5, 2025

Feb. 5, 2025

26

Notice of Electronic Filing re Motion Hearing, 25 e-mailed to Cheryl.Rost@usdoj.gov bounced due to ending employment in the Disability Rights Section of the Department of Justice as of January 17, 2025. The primary e-mail address associated with the attorney record has been deleted. Pursuant to Local Rules it is the attorneys obligation to maintain all personal contact information including e-mail address in the CM/ECF system. THERE IS NO PDF DOCUMENT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS ENTRY. (mza) TEXT ONLY ENTRY (Entered: 02/10/2025)

Feb. 10, 2025

Feb. 10, 2025

Text Only Bounced Notice of Electronic Filing E-mail

Feb. 10, 2025

Feb. 10, 2025

27

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Matthew Jimenez Barragan counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Matthew Jimenez Barragan is no longer counsel of record for the aforementioned party in this case for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Barragan, Matthew) (Entered: 02/24/2025)

Feb. 24, 2025

Feb. 24, 2025

28

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Anna Bobrow counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Anna Bobrow is no longer counsel of record for the aforementioned party in this case for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by plaintiff United States of America. (Bobrow, Anna) (Entered: 04/22/2025)

April 22, 2025

April 22, 2025

29

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Rebecca Guterman counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Rebecca Guterman is no longer counsel of record for the aforementioned party in this case for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by plaintiff United States of America. (Guterman, Rebecca) (Entered: 05/06/2025)

May 6, 2025

May 6, 2025

30

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Christine Kim counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding Christine Kim as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Attorney Christine Kim added to party United States of America(pty:pla))(Kim, Christine) (Entered: 05/29/2025)

May 29, 2025

May 29, 2025

31

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Christine Kim counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Felicia Sadler is no longer counsel of record for the aforementioned party in this case for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Kim, Christine) (Entered: 05/29/2025)

May 29, 2025

May 29, 2025

32

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Christine Kim counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Nabina Sinha is no longer counsel of record for the aforementioned party in this case for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Kim, Christine) (Entered: 05/29/2025)

May 29, 2025

May 29, 2025

33

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Christine Kim counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding David W. Knight as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Kim, Christine) (Entered: 06/03/2025)

June 3, 2025

June 3, 2025

34

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Christine Kim counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Adding Katherine Dutcher as counsel of record for United States of America for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Kim, Christine) (Entered: 06/03/2025)

June 3, 2025

June 3, 2025

35

MINUTES OF ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO DISMISS 18 by Judge Stephen V. Wilson. For the foregoing reasons, Defendant's motion to dismiss is GRANTED. Plaintiff's complaint is dismissed without prejudice. Plaintiff has 14 days to remedy the deficiencies identified in this order and file an amended complaint. (See document for further details).; granting 18 MOTION to Dismiss Case. (aco) (Entered: 06/06/2025)

June 6, 2025

June 6, 2025

Clearinghouse
36

(IN CHAMBERS) ORDER by Judge Stephen V. Wilson: In light of Plaintiffs failure to file an amended complaint by the deadline set by the Court in its previous order, Plaintiff is ORDERED to show cause in writing no later than July 16, 2025 why this action should not be dismissed for lack of prosecution. SO ORDERED. THERE IS NO PDF DOCUMENT ASSOCIATED WITH THIS ENTRY. (dta) TEXT ONLY ENTRY (Entered: 07/02/2025)

July 2, 2025

July 2, 2025

Generic Text Only Entry

July 2, 2025

July 2, 2025

37

Notice of Appearance or Withdrawal of Counsel: for attorney Margaret Ming Chen counsel for Plaintiff United States of America. Margaret M. Chen is no longer counsel of record for the aforementioned party in this case for the reason indicated in the G-123 Notice. Filed by Plaintiff United States of America. (Chen, Margaret) (Entered: 07/03/2025)

July 3, 2025

July 3, 2025

38

NOTICE of Voluntary Dismissal filed by Plaintiff United States of America. Dismissal is without prejudice. (Kim, Christine) (Entered: 07/03/2025)

July 3, 2025

July 3, 2025

Clearinghouse

Case Details

State / Territory:

California

Case Type(s):

Disability Rights

Key Dates

Filing Date: Oct. 8, 2024

Case Ongoing: Yes

Plaintiffs

Plaintiff Description:

The United States Civil Rights Division and Disability Rights Section

Plaintiff Type(s):

U.S. Dept of Justice plaintiff

Attorney Organizations:

U.S. Dept. of Justice Civil Rights Division

Public Interest Lawyer: Yes

Filed Pro Se: No

Class Action Sought: No

Class Action Outcome: Not sought

Defendants

Private Entity/Person

Fitness International, LLC D/B/A LA Fitness

Defendant Type(s):

Retailer

Case Details

Causes of Action:

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12111 et seq.

Other Dockets:

Central District of California 8:24-cv-02172

Available Documents:

Complaint (any)

Trial Court Docket

Outcome

Prevailing Party: Defendant

Relief Sought:

Damages

Declaratory judgment

Injunction

Relief Granted:

None

Source of Relief:

None

Issues

Disability and Disability Rights:

Cerebral palsy

Mobility impairment

Multiple sclerosis

Discrimination Area:

Accommodation / Leave

Discrimination Basis:

Disability (inc. reasonable accommodations)

Recommended Citation