As if motorcoach operators didn't have enough to worry about, two more have surfaced thanks to a few litigious slimeballs and zealous government attorneys.

The Associated Press reports that businesses across the country are being hit with a rash of what have come to be called "drive-by" ADA lawsuits. The suits are little more than shakedown attempts by lawyers and their clients hoping for quick cash settlements.

The basis for the suits is the Americans with Disabilities Act that dictates requirements aimed at improving the mobility of disabled individuals. Motorcoach operators know the law well because it requires them to have wheelchair accessible coaches.

But some judges are suggesting that a large number of ADA lawsuits are frivolous actions filed by a small number of disabled people and their lawyers.

A federal judge in Orlando, noted in a ruling last year that Jorge Luis Rodriguez, a paraplegic, had filed more than 200 ADA lawsuits within a few years, most of them using the same attorney. "The current ADA lawsuit binge is, therefore, essentially driven by economics - that is, the economics of attorney's fees," the judge wrote. He said Rodriguez's testimony left the impression that he is a "professional pawn in a scheme to bilk attorney's fees" from those being sued.

In December, a federal judge in Los Angeles said a man -- who had filed hundreds of lawsuits that accused businesses of violating the ADA -- was running an extortion scam. The judge barred the plaintiff, Jarek Molski, from bringing any more suits without court permission.

Molski, who has used a wheelchair since he was paralyzed in a motorcycle accident a decade ago, has filed 400 suits in the past seven years against restaurants, wineries, bowling alleys, banks and other businesses. In most cases, the judge said, Molski demands $4,000 a day until the target of his suit is brought into compliance with ADA, then agrees to a cash settlement.

Some disabled individuals say such lawsuits are needed. They contend that complaining to the Justice Department produces no results.

In Oklahoma, the lawsuit phenomenon has led the Oklahoma Restaurant Association to post a warning on its Web site about attorneys hiring disabled people to seek out ADA violations.

Another threat comes in the form of attorneys from the U.S. Justice and Labor departments. These guys are stepping up the pace of criminal prosecutions for OSHA violations. That's right, they're pressing criminal charges when they find serious workplace safety and health violations.

One attorney from the Justice Department criminal division told a conference last month in Las Vegas that regional government officials have new instructions to contact the Justice Department to discuss the possibility of criminal prosecution when OSHA believes that a fatality has resulted from a willful violation of an OSHA standard.

The attorney also said there is an increased emphasis on utilizing obstruction of justice laws, which can result in felony convictions, when company executives unlawfully modify or destroy documents that should have been maintained. If employees, supervisors or others engage in these acts, "the Justice Department is going to take that case," and they will be prosecuted, the attorney said.
This is a no-brainer: Don't give the sue birds any reason to target your company.