Judge Margo Brodie
Nonprofit Community Access provides supportive housing and job training for psychiatrically disabled New Yorkers. The Cardonas live in a Community Access building. In addition to state law-based tort claims not limited to invasion of privacy and assault and battery, they alleged Community Access engaged in discriminatory practices violating the Fair Housing Act (FHA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act. An Oct. 29, 2009, settlement agreement released Community Access and its employees from “any and all existing or possible” claims arising from the Cardonas’ tenancy in Community Access buildings. Thus, the Cardonas’ prior July 2009 suit was dismissed. District court granted Community Access summary judgment dismissing the Cardonas’ amended complaint asserting under the FHA that they were treated differently than non-Hispanic, non-disabled, homosexual individuals. Such claims were encompassed in the 2009 action and barred by the settlement pact. Defendants were also granted judgment on the Cardonas’ claims under the ADA and Rehabilitation Act. The bulk of their claims thereunder, and their disability claim, were precluded by the settlement agreement.
