CDC is qualified under the Certified Access Specialist program (CASp) established by the California Division of the State Architect pursuant to Senate Bill 1608 (SB 1608).   Karen Haney, Principal of CDC, is one of the original 27 Certified Access Specialists (CASp) certified by the State Architect to provide qualified accessibility surveys, review plans for disabled access compliance and provide CASp inspection reports to property and business owners.  

In addition to promoting compliance with disabled access regulations in places of public accommodation, the CASp program was developed in part as a proactive measure to protect property and business owners from unnecessary disabled access-related lawsuits that do not advance the intent of the ADA.

The CASp program applies to properties that have been surveyed by a CASp inspector after January 1, 2009.  If a property or business has a CASp survey, it affords the property or business owner enhanced legal benefits if a construction-related accessibility claim is made against that property.  The legal benefits include a court granted 90-day stay of the proceedings with respect to the claim and a scheduled early evaluation conference.  A stay is a temporary halting of all litigation which precludes attorneys from engaging in motions or discovery that may inflate attorneys’ fees and final settlements.  The early evaluation conference is a court run mediation between the parties to facilitate negotiations and to expedite settlement.

CDC's extensive experience with property surveys before the CASp program went into effect is a benefit to our clients.  As required of a CASp inspector, we provide CASp inspections & reports that identify any construction-related accessibility issues, offer recommendations for compliance and provide a watermarked, signed and dated CASp certificate serving as evidence that a CASp survey has been conducted at the specific property or business.