1BILL LANN LEE

Acting Assistant Attorney General

Civil Rights Division
JOHN L. WODATCH, Chief
RENEE M. WOHLENHAUS, Deputy Chief
Disability Rights Section
ALEJANDRO N. MAYORKAS
United States Attorney
LEON W. WEIDMAN
Assistant United States Attorney
Chief, Civil Division
SHIRLEY WANG
Assistant United States Attorney
California Bar No. 181669
Room 7516, Federal Building
300 North Los Angeles Street
Los Angeles, California 90012
Telephone: (213) 894-0474
Facsimile: (213) 894-7819
JEANINE M. WORDEN
JOHN A. RUSS IV
Trial Attorneys
Disability Rights Section
Civil Rights Division
U.S. Department of Justice
Post Office Box 66738
Washington, D.C. 20035-6738
Telephone: (202) 307-6556
Telephone: (202) 353-7738
Facsimile: (202) 307-1198

Counsel for Plaintiff

United States of America
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ) Civil Action No.: 99-1034 FMC (SHx)
)
Plaintiff, ) PLAINTIFF UNITED STATES' MEMORANDUM
) OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN
v. ) OPPOSITION TO DEFENDANTS' EX PARTE
) APPLICATION FOR AN ORDER ENLARGING
) THE TIME IN WHICH DEFENDANTS MAY
AMC ENTERTAINMENT, INC., ) REFILE AN APA COUNTERCLAIM
et al., )
) Judge: Florence-Marie Cooper
Defendants. ) Date: To be determined.
) Time: To be determined.
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

I.....The Court Should Not Delay Resolution of the APA Question for an Additional Four Months.
..........................................................................................................................................................3
A.................................................................Defendants’ Request for an Extension Is Premature.
.....................................................................................................................................................3
B...The United States Has Cooperated with Defendants by Providing Non­Privileged, Relevant 
Discovery. ...................................................................................................................................5
II..Further Discovery Will Not Yield Any Evidence of Final Agency Action that Has Not Already 
Been Rejected by this Court’s December 17th Order or Binding Court Precedent.........................7
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11

i
 TABLE OF AUTHORITIES

CASES

Assembly of the State of Cal. v. United States Department of Commerce, 968 F.2d 916 (9th Cir.
1992) ...........................................................................................................6

Dow Jones & Co. v. Department of Justice, 917 F.2d 571 (D.C. Cir. 1990) ..................................6

Duval Ranching Co. v. Glickman, 965 F. Supp. 1427 (D. Nev. 1997) ...........................................4

Gallo Cattle Co. v. United States Department of Agriculture, 159 F.3d 1194 (9th Cir. 1998)
..........................................................................................................7, 10, 11

Lara v. Cinemark USA, Inc., 2000 WL 297662 (5th Cir. Apr. 6, 2000) .......................................11

Mission Power Engineering Co. v. Continental Casualty Co., 883 F. Supp. 488 (C.D. Cal.
1995) ...........................................................................................................1

Mt. Adams Veneer Co. v. United States, 896 F.2d 339 (9th Cir. 1990) ......................................4, 9

National Automatic Laundry & Cleaning Council v. Schultz, 443 F.2d 689 (D.C. Cir. 1970). . .7-8

New Jersey Hospital Assn v. United States, 23 F. Supp. 2d 497 (D. N.J. 1998) ............................4

Standard Oil Co. v. FTC, 449 U.S. 232, 101 S. Ct. 488, 66 L. Ed. 2d 416 (1980) .........................3

Ukiah Valley Medical Ctr. v. FTC, 911 F.2d 261 (9th Cir. 1990) .................................................10

United States v. Alexander, 106 F.3d 874 (9th Cir. 1997) ..........................................................7, 9

United States v. AMC, CV 99-1034, Order Granting Plaintiff’s Motion to Dismiss Defendants’
Counterclaim (December 17, 1999)....................................................passim

United States v. Cinemark USA, Inc., 99-CV-705, Memorandum and Opinion and Order
(March 22, 2000)...................................................................................9, 10

ii
 STATUTES AND REGULATIONS

Administrative Procedure Act (APA)

5 U.S.C. §§ 701-706 3
5 U.S.C. § 704 7

American with Disabilities Act (ADA)

42 U.S.C. § 12101, et seq. ............................................................................................................3

42 U.S.C. §§ 12181-12189 ...........................................................................................................3
42 U.S.C. § 12186(c) 10
42 U.S.C. § 12188(b) 10

64 Fed. Reg. 62248, 62278 (Nov. 16, 1999) ..............................................................................10

28 C.F.R. pt 36, Appendix A, § 4.33.3.................................................................................passim

36 C.F.R. pt 1191 10

iii
 INTRODUCTION

The United States hereby opposes Defendants’ premature ex parte application1 for an

extension of time to reassert their Administrative Procedure Act (APA)-based counterclaim in

order to allow additional time for discovery.2 A hearing on Defendants’ motion to compel

discovery is currently scheduled before Magistrate Judge Hillman on May 4, 2000.3 The

Magistrate Judge may well conclude next week the scope of further discovery, if any, to which

Defendant is entitled. Determining now whether an extension of time would be necessary for

review of such discovery is premature at this point, as the Magistrate Judge may well deny

Defendants’ motion to compel.

Magistrate Judge Hillman stated at a January 11th hearing that he tentatively agreed with

the Department’s arguments that certain documents were privileged or irrelevant and should not

be turned over. See Declaration of Stephanie Stoltzfus at ¶ 14 (“Stoltzfus Decl.”). The United

States has opposed Defendants’ motion to compel on the grounds that the Department is only

withholding privileged or non-relevant documents and that it has already provided Defendants

with thousands of pages of discovery over the course of the last ten months in response to

1
Defendants fail to explain why an ex parte application was necessary to resolve this
deadline issue, rather than following the regular motion calendar schedule, given that the
deadline is approximately one month away, on May 24, 2000. As the case Mission Power
Engineering Co. v. Continental Casualty Co., 883 F. Supp. 488 (C.D. Cal. 1995), makes clear,
an ex parte application should explain “why the accompanying proposed motion for the
ultimate relief requested cannot be calendered in the usual manner,” id. at 492, an explanation
Defendants have failed to provide in this case. The mere fact that Defendants have not received
certain documents from the government that the Department believes are privileged or
irrelevant, an issue currently pending before the Magistrate, “is insufficient to justify ex parte
relief.” See id. at 493.

Furthermore, the United States informed Defendants that it would stipulate to a

one-month extension of AMC and AMCE’s deadline to reassert their counterclaim.
2
Although Defendants request the extension for both STK and AMC, see Defs.’ Ex Parte
Application at 13, in fact the current May 24th deadline only applies to defendants AMC and
AMCE. STK has already filed an APA-counterclaim when its served the United States with its
answer in February, 2000. The United States currently has a motion to dismiss STK’s
counterclaim for lack of jurisdiction calendered for hearing on May 22, 2000.
3
The Magistrate Judge has also scheduled the United States’ motion to compel further
discovery on the same day.

1
Defendants’ expansive requests for production. See Stoltzfus Decl. at ¶¶ 2-7. This Court has

already upheld the Magistrate’s conclusion that the United States’ settlement negotiations with

other theater chains are protected from discovery. See United States v. AMC, CV 99-1034,

Order Denying Defendants’ Motion for Review and Reconsideration at 5 (Apr. 12, 2000)

(hereinafter “April 12th Order”).

Furthermore, delaying resolution of the APA question by four months is unwarranted

because the District Court has already rejected Defendants’ arguments that the United States has

engaged in final agency action in this case. See Order Granting Plaintiff’s Motion to Dismiss

Defendants’ Counterclaim at 17-18 (December 17, 1999) (hereinafter “December 17th Order”).

Without final agency action, the APA does not waive sovereign immunity for this Court to hear

Defendants’ counterclaims. Defendants have failed to identify any Department action that

could constitute final agency action as defined by the December 17th Order and binding

precedent. Even if Defendants obtain further documents at the May 4th hearing, there is no

agency action that qualifies as final under these standards. Indisputably, Defendants have

simply used the APA question to divert attention away from the central issue in this case—

i.e. their discriminatory treatment of persons with disabilities.

If the Court believes it appropriate, however, the United States would agree to a thirty-

day extension of AMC and AMCE’s deadline to reassert their counterclaim, as the hearing on

Defendants’ motion to compel discovery was recently postponed from April 14th to May 4th.4

4
The Magistrate moved this hearing date at the request of the government due to an
unexpected illness. The Department indicated that it would be available for a hearing during
the last week of April if necessary. After consulting both parties’ schedules, the Magistrate
Judge selected May 4th for the hearing of Defendants’ motion to compel. The Magistrate later
added the United States’ motion to compel to that same date.

2
I. The Court Should Not Delay Resolution of the APA Question for an Additional
Four Months.

A. Defendants’ Request for an Extension Is Premature.

The Department of Justice (“Department”) has been designated by Congress as the

agency to monitor and enforce compliance with most provisions of the Americans with

Disabilities Act (“ADA”), 42 U.S.C. § 12101, et seq. The United States brought the present

action against Defendants when it discovered Defendants were designing stadium-style theaters

that failed to provide patrons who use wheelchairs access to seating “comparable” to that

offered to other members of the movie-going public, in violation of Title III of the ADA, 42

U.S.C. §§ 12181-12189, and the Department’s implementing regulations, in particular Standard

4.33.3. See 28 C.F.R. pt. 36, Appendix A, § 4.33.3 (requiring that wheelchair users be provided

“lines of sight comparable to those for members of the general public.”).5

From the beginning of this litigation, however, Defendants have attempted to turn

enforcement of the law on its head, by challenging the ability of the Department to interpret its

own regulations and by improperly “turning prosecutor into defendant.” See Standard Oil Co.

v. FTC, 449 U.S. 232, 242-43, 101 S. Ct. 488, 66 L. Ed. 2d 416 (1980). Through their

counterclaim based on the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. §§ 701-706,

Defendants have improperly attempted to prevent the Department from offering a plain

language interpretation of what Standard 4.33.3 means, and the District Court has already
rejected Defendants’ first APA-based counterclaim because it found no final agency action. See

December 17th Order at 14. The Court rejected all of Defendants’ arguments that the United

States had engaged in final agency action, but permitted Defendants to refile their counterclaim

at a later date. See December 17th Order at 17-18. The date for refiling was originally fixed at

January 31, 2000.

5
Despite Defendants’ assertions to the contrary, the United States has interpreted
Standard 4.33.3 consistently. The Department of Justice articulated its plain-language
interpretation of Standard 4.33.3 as applied to stadium-style theaters in an amicus brief filed in
1998 in a private action against another motion picture theater operator, Lara v. Cinemark USA,
No. EP-97-CV-502-H (W.D. Tex.). It is Standard 4.33.3, however, and not the Department of
Justice’s interpretation of that Standard, that has binding legal effect.

3
 Subsequently, this Court issued a scheduling order granting Defendants’ an almost four-

month extension of time to refile their APA counterclaim, to May 24, 2000. See February 28th,

2000 Order. Defendants now request an additional four-month extension, one that is wholly

unwarranted under the circumstances.6 The hearing on Defendants’ motion to compel further

discovery is scheduled for May 4, 2000, before Magistrate Judge Hillman. At a hearing on

January 11, 2000, the Magistrate Judge offered his tentative views that the United States had

properly invoked its privileges, including the deliberative process and work product privileges,

and that the District Court’s December 17th Order dismissing without prejudice AMC’s APA

counterclaim was law of the case, including its determination that legal briefs and private

negotiations do not constitute final agency action. See Stoltzfus Decl. at ¶ 14; see also

December 17th Order at 10, 12; see also Mt. Adams Veneer Co. v. United States, 896 F.2d 339,

343 (9th Cir. 1990); New Jersey Hospital Ass’n v. United States, 23 F. Supp. 2d 497 (D. N.J.

1998); Duval Ranching Co. v. Glickman, 965 F. Supp. 1427, 1440 (D. Nev. 1997). He further

offered the tentative conclusion that Defendants’ requests for discovery regarding sports arenas

were not relevant to the present action. Stoltzfus Decl. at ¶ 14.

The United States anticipates that the Magistrate may resolve the issues raised by

Defendants’ Motion to Compel at or soon after the May 4, 2000, hearing. At that time, the

Magistrate Judge may well conclude that the Defendants are not entitled to any of the privileged

or irrelevant discovery they are seeking with their motion to compel; delaying the deadline to

6
On April 24, 2000, counsel for Defendants informed the United States that
Defendants would seek an ex parte order to move the deadline for refiling the APA counterclaim
by three months. Counsel for the United States indicated that the government would agree to a
thirty-day extension, in light of the fact that the hearing on Defendants’ motion to compel
discovery had been moved from April 14, 2000, to May 4, 2000. The parties did not address
moving the hearing date for the United States’ pending motion to dismiss STK’s APA-based
counterclaim, currently scheduled for hearing on May 22, 2000.

Further discovery will not reveal any agency action that can be properly identified as final
for purposes of waiving sovereign immunity under the APA, in light of this Court’s December
17th, 2000 Order and binding Supreme Court and Ninth Circuit precedent. See discussion below.
However, in light of the recent three-week postponement of the hearing to resolve Defendants’
motion to compel, the United States would also agree to a thirty-day extension of the hearing
date for its pending motion to dismiss STK’s counterclaim.

4
reassert the APA counterclaim by four months therefore would not serve the interests of a

speedy resolution of the APA question. Extending the current deadline of May 24th by one

month would provide sufficient time for Defendants to prepare their motion to reassert their

counterclaim, while at the same time avoiding any unnecessary delay if the Magistrate Judge

upholds the Department of Justice’s assertion of privileges.

B. The United States Has Cooperated with Defendants by Providing Non-

Privileged, Relevant Discovery.

The United States disagrees with Defendants’ misrepresentation of the events in this

case as described in Defendants’ ex parte application. Rather than respond to every inaccurate

statement, however, the United States will address a few issues of relevance here. Most

importantly, despite Defendants’ assertions, the United States has provided over seven thousand

pages of relevant, non-privileged discovery in response to Defendants’ broad requests for

production and interrogatories.7 See Stoltzfus Decl. at ¶ 2. In addition, other documents

responsive to Defendants’ discovery requests are available on the Department of Justice’s

website, on the Freedom of Information Act and ADA pages, which can be searched for key

words.8

In opposing Defendants’ overly broad motion to compel, the United States has asserted

privileges protecting certain documents from discovery, including the deliberative process

7
This discovery includes the pleadings and correspondence files for several lawsuits,
including Lara v. Cinemark, Fiedler v. AMC, Arnold v. United Artists, and Lonberg v. Sanborn.
The Department has also provided, for example, amicus briefs, summary judgment filings,
copies of the Arnold settlement agreement, technical assistance documents, public studies on
sight lines in movie theaters, letters to Congress, newspaper and magazine articles discussing
accessibility issues at stadium-style theaters, agenda and minutes from public hearings in
Florida, sight line drawings of stadium auditoriums, and talking points for speeches by
Department of Justice officials. See Stoltzfus Decl. at ¶ 8.
8
Although Defendants assert that “new defendant STK” should be entitled to develop
discovery of its potential APA claim, see Defs.’ Ex Parte Application at 3, Defense counsel, who
represents both STK and AMC, told Magistrate Judge Hillman during a February 14, 2000
conference call that STK wanted the same discovery that AMC was seeking in its motion to
compel discovery. See Stoltzfus Decl. at ¶ 9.

5
privilege, the attorney-client privilege, attorney work product, and the law enforcement

investigative privilege.9 The United States has also argued that certain documents sought by

Defendants, such as those pertaining to sports arenas, are not relevant to the Department’s

enforcement of the law in the stadium-style theater context. The United States has a right and

obligation to assert privileges for documents to which Defendants are not entitled. See, e.g.,

Assembly of the State of Cal. v. United States Dep’t of Commerce, 968 F.2d 916, 920 (9th Cir.

1992) (holding that the main purpose of the deliberative process privilege is to protect the free

and frank exchange of ideas and opinions in the agency decision-making process); Dow Jones

& Co. v. Department of Justice, 917 F.2d 571, 573 (D.C. Cir. 1990) (warning that “the quality

of administrative decision-making would be seriously undermined if agencies were forced to

operate in a fishbowl”).

This Court has already upheld the United States’ objection to turning over documents

included in its settlement negotiations. See April 12th Order at 5 (holding that “evidence

pertaining to meetings, discussions, and negotiations, between plaintiff and other theater owners

concerning enforcement of the ADA’s line-of-sight requirements is privileged and not subject to

discovery”). To characterize the government’s refusal to turn over privileged or irrelevant

discovery as “stonewall[ing]” is therefore inaccurate and inappropriate. See Defs.’ Ex Parte

Motion at 3, 12.

9
Pursuant to the Magistrate Judge’s instruction, the United States has described to
Defendants the nature of each document listed on its privilege log, as well as the privileges
applicable for each document. Of these 316 documents, AMC has decided to challenge the
privileges asserted for 75. See Stoltzfus Decl. at ¶ 10-11. The hearing on these documents will
be held on May 4, 2000.

6
II. Further Discovery Will Not Yield Any Evidence of Final Agency Action that Has
Not Already Been Rejected by this Court’s December 17th Order or Binding Court
Precedent.

Even if Defendants’ motion to compel discovery were granted in full, Defendants’ APA-

based counterclaim should be dismissed because Defendants cannot identify any agency action

that qualifies as “final” for purposes of waiving sovereign immunity under the APA, as defined

by this Court’s December 17th Order and by binding precedent. See 5 U.S.C. § 704

(government must have engaged in “final agency action for which there is no adequate remedy

in a court”); see also Gallo Cattle Co. v. United States Dep’t of Agriculture, 159 F.3d 1194,

1198 (9th Cir. 1998).

In her December 17th Order, District Court Judge Morrow rejected AMC’s arguments

that the Department had engaged in final agency action. Specifically, the Court held that the

filing of briefs in litigation (including amicus briefs), the decision to file a complaint, and

settlement negotiations and threats of lawsuits with theater chains do not constitute final agency

action. See December 17th Order at 10, 11, 12; see also id. at 14 (“Thus, viewed separately or in

combination, the matters AMC characterizes as final agency action are not the kind of actions

that are subject to judicial review under the APA.”). The Court further found that, to the extent

it would be relevant if the Department of Justice had taken an industry-wide position as in

National Automatic Laundry & Cleaning Council v. Schultz, 443 F.2d 689 (D.C. Cir. 1970), that

“at most, DOJ has communicated with ten members of the theater industry nationwide, and has
not sought to press its interpretations of Standard 4.33.3 uniformly even among the largest

owners. Consequently, the court concludes the evidence does not establish that DOJ has

engaged in final agency action.” See December 17th Order at 17. The Court’s conclusions in its

December 17th Order represent the law of the case. United States v. Alexander, 106 F.3d 874,

876 (9th Cir. 1997).

Although Defendants cite, out of context, oral statements about discovery made by

Judge Morrow at the September 8, 1999 hearing, the Judge explicitly stated that she was not

issuing any ruling on the scope of discovery. See Sept. 8, 1999, Tr. at 8:20-24. (Exhibit A)

(“With respect to the issue of the proper scope of discovery, the Court would make the

7
following comments: It is not issuing any ruling with respect to that matter today. That matter

being, in the first instance, one to be presented to Judge Hillman.”). Furthermore, Defendants

ignore the Court’s subsequent final written order, entered on December 17, 1999, in which the

Court addressed the issue of whether the Department had taken an industry-wide position

similar to National Automatic Laundry. The Department had filed a supplemental declaration

that it had had communications with less than ten of the fifty largest theater owners in North

America. See December 17th Order at 16-17 & 17 n.29. In light of this statement, the Court

concluded that

the evidence before the court suggests that at most, DOJ has communicated with ten

members of the theater industry nationwide, and has not sought to press its

interpretation of Standard 4.33.3 uniformly even among the largest owners.

Consequently, the court concludes the evidence does not establish that DOJ has engaged

in final agency action.

December 17th Order at 17.

This conclusion is supported elsewhere in the December 17th Order. For example, the

Court explicitly held that the Department had not attempted to articulate an industry-wide

policy as in National Automatic Laundry but rather had “communicated privately with

individual theater owners to negotiate and resolve its differences with them. These

communications do not have ‘the contemplation and likely consequence of expected

conformity.’” Id. at 13 (quoting National Automatic Laundry & Cleaning Council v. Schultz,

443 F.2d 689, 698 (D.C. Cir. 1971)). Furthermore, the Court also found that “[n]either

settlement negotiations nor threats of suit constitute final agency action that may be judicially

reviewed.” Id. at 12. As for further discovery, the Court concluded in its written order that “the

parties dispute the proper scope of discovery on this issue and that multiple discovery matters

remained to be resolved.” See Dec. 17th Order at 17. The Court did not attempt to resolve those

disputes itself.

8
 In that light, Defendants’ request for a four-month extension in refiling their APA

counterclaim represents an unnecessary delay in resolving this question. This Court has already

rejected Defendants’ previous attempts to characterize the government’s actions as “final

agency action,” and Defendants have failed to identify any other action that might qualify as

“final agency action.” Defendants’ memorandum in support of its ex parte application simply

seeks to revisit issues already decided by this Court or that are currently pending before the

Magistrate. See Alexander, 106 F.3d at 877. None of the grounds asserted by Defendants

justify a four-month delay.

Defendants cite an oral recommendation by a Texas Magistrate Judge that the

Department had engaged in final agency action—again, ignoring this Court’s December 17th

Order as binding law of the case. See Alexander, 106 F.3d at 876. Defendants’ argument

invoking the Texas Magistrate’s statement merely attempts to revisit legal conclusions already

resolved by this Court’s order, particularly this Court’s conclusion that the filing of an amicus

brief does not constitute final agency action. See Dec. 17th Order at 10. The United States’

offering of a plain language interpretation of its regulations in a court proceeding simply does

not qualify as final agency action that potentially invokes this court’s jurisdiction. See Mt.

Adams, 896 F.2d at 343. Furthermore, a District Court in the Northern District of Ohio has

rejected the Texas Magistrate’s reasoning and has reached the same conclusion as this Court,

dismissing a movie theater chain’s APA counterclaim for lack of final agency action. See

United States v. Cinemark USA, Inc., 99-CV-705, Memorandum and Opinion and Order at 6

(Mar. 22, 2000) (hereinafter “Ohio Cinemark Order”) (“Because they do not meet the

requirements of finality, Plaintiff’s filing of complaints in their enforcement actions;

correspondence discussing settlement or alleged violations of the ADA; and amicus briefs are

not ‘final’ agency actions.”) (see Exhibit B). The Texas Magistrate’s recommendations

themselves are currently under review by the District Court in the Northern District of Texas,

which held oral argument on the appeal of the Magistrate’s ruling on April 21, 2000.

9
 Defendants’ citation to recent statements made by the United States Architectural and

Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (“the Access Board”) are also inapposite.10 See

Defs.’ Ex Parte Application at 11 (citing 64 Fed. Reg. 62248, 62278 (Nov. 16, 1999)). The

Board’s statement that the Department is attempting to settle particular cases where wheelchair

patrons are not provided comparable lines of sight is consistent with the December 17th Order’s

conclusion that there is no final agency action in this case. The Department’s interpretation of

the regulation does not determine rights or fix obligations, nor do any binding legal

consequences flow from it. See Gallo Cattle Co., 159 F.3d at 1199; Ukiah Valley Medical Ctr.

v. FTC, 911 F.2d 261, 264 (9th Cir. 1990). Although the Department attempts to resolve

violations of the law without resorting to litigation through settlement negotiations, the

Department cannot enforce the regulation upon an unwilling party except by filing an

enforcement action in a U.S. District Court and obtaining a court order. See 42 U.S.C. §

12188(b)(1)(B); id. § 12888(b)(2); see Ukiah Valley, 911 F.2d at 265 (no final agency action

where party is “not yet subject to any order requiring them to act”); see also Ohio Cinemark

Order at 8 (Mar. 22, 2000) (“Any order for relief, damages, or levying of a fine can only be

made by the district court, and not by the Attorney General.”) (see Exhibit B). Defendants’

position that the Department’s attempts to settle disputes somehow constitutes final agency

action is not only contrary to law, see December 17th Order at 12 (citing cases), but also would

have the perverse effect of discouraging settlement in lieu of litigation.

10
On page 6 of its ex parte application, Defendants erroneously refers to the Standard
4.33.3 as "ADAAG § 4.33.3" However, the term "ADAAG" properly refers to the Americans
with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities, a regulation
promulgated by the Access Board. See 36 C.F.R. pt. 1191. Under the ADA, the regulations
promulgated by the Justice Department must be consistent with, but are not required to be
identical to, the regulations promulgated by the Access Board. See 42 U.S.C. § 12186(c). In
1991, the Department adopted the ADAAG as the Department's Standards. The distinction
between the ADAAG and the Standards is important because the Justice Department adopted
only the text of the ADAAG — not the Access Board's Preamble to or interpretations of the
ADAAG.

10
 Lara v. Cinemark USA, Inc., 2000 WL 297662 (5th Cir. Apr. 6, 2000), to which

Defendants cite, actually favors the Department’s position that no final agency action is at issue.

In Lara, the Fifth Circuit referred to the Department’s interpretation as a “litigating position”

that did not provide “specific regulatory guidance” about the meaning of Standard 4.33.3. See

id. at *5. Whether or not the Fifth Circuit gave the Department’s interpretation the proper level

of consideration, it is plain that the Court did not consider it to be final agency action. Most

importantly, the Fifth Circuit did not believe that the interpretation fixes rights or imposes any

legal obligations. Absent that, the interpretation cannot be final agency action. See Gallo

Cattle Co., 159 F.3d at 1199.

CONCLUSION

Another four-month delay to resolve this issue is unjustified under the circumstances, as

none of the information Defendants seek will reveal final agency action to invoke this Court’s

jurisdiction. Furthermore, the Magistrate currently has a hearing scheduled for May 4, 2000, to

resolve Defendants’ motion to compel discovery; if the Magistrate Judge finds that the

discovery Defendants seek is privileged or not relevant, there is no further need to delay final

resolution of the APA question.

However, if the Court believes it appropriate, the United States would agree to a thirty-

day extension of AMC and AMCE’s deadline to reassert their counterclaim, as the hearing on

Defendants’ motion to compel discovery was postponed from its original date of April 14th to

May 4th. Likewise, the United States would consent to a thirty-day extension of the May 22nd

hearing on the United States’ motion to dismiss STK’s counterclaim.

The Department also requests that if the Court elects to hold a hearing on this ex parte

application, that the hearing be held telephonically, as the Department’s attorneys are located in

Washington, D.C.

11
 Respectfully submitted,

Bill Lann Lee

Acting Assistant Attorney General
Civil Rights Division

John L. Wodatch, Chief

Renee M. Wohlenhaus, Deputy Chief
Disability Rights Section

Jeanine M. Worden
John Albert Russ, IV
Trial Attorneys
Disability Rights Section
Civil Rights Division
U.S. Department of Justice
P.O. Box 66738
Washington, D.C. 20035-6738
(202) 307-6556 (telephone)
(202) 307-1198 (facsimile)

Counsel for Plaintiff

United States of America

Dated: April 28, 2000

12
 PROOF OF SERVICE

I, John Albert Russ IV, declare:

I am over the age of 18 and not a party to the within action. I am employed by the U.S.
Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section. My business address is
P.O. Box 66738, Washington, D.C. 20035-6738.
On April 28, 2000, I served the following documents,

PLAINTIFF UNITED STATES’ MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND

AUTHORITIES IN OPPOSITION TO DEFENDANTS’ EX PARTE
APPLICATION FOR AN ORDER ENLARGING THE TIME IN WHICH
DEFENDANTS MAY REFILE AN APA COUNTERCLAIM, and

DECLARATION OF STEPHANIE L. STOLTZFUS SUPPORTING THE UNITED

STATES’ MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN OPPOSITION
TO DEFENDANTS’ EX PARTE APPLICATION FOR AN ORDER ENLARGING
THE TIME IN WHICH DEFENDANTS MAY REFILE AN APA
COUNTERCLAIM

on each person or entity named below by sending a facsimile copy to their office, and by
enclosing a copy in an envelope addressed as shown below and by sending it via overnight mail
to the following addresses:
Date and Place of mailing: April 28, 2000, Washington, D.C.

Person(s) and/or Entity(ies) to Whom mailed:

Gregory F. Hurley, Esq.

Kutak Rock
620 Newport Ctr. Drive, Suite 450
Newport Beach, CA 92660

Robert Harrop, Esq.

Lathrop & Gage L.C.
2345 Grand Boulevard
Kansas City, MO 64108-2684

I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America that the
foregoing is true and correct.
Executed on: April 28, 2000, at Washington, D..C.

John Albert Russ IV