DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Legal Newsline) – Women refused admittance to a strip club because they weren’t accompanied by a man will have another chance to make their case.
That’s because a Florida appeals court ruled Rachel’s Adult Entertainment and Steak House failed to join Orange County to its challenge of a discrimination ordinance.
“(T)he Legislature authorized trial courts to grant declaratory relief in proceedings concerning the validity of a county ordinance – but only if the county was made a party to those proceedings,” Judge Kerry Evander wrote in a July 24 opinion.
Anita Yanes and Brittney Smith sued after they were refused entry to Rachel’s, then brought a lawsuit based on Orange County ordinances 22-42 and 22-4. They allow for lawsuits based on alleged discriminatory practices.
Rachel’s argued the ordinances were preempted by the Florida Civil Rights Act, and the trial court agreed. But the appeals court ruled Rachel’s had an obligation to join Orange County as a party if it was going to challenge the ordinances.
“Rachel’s argues that because it was a defendant in a suit for damages, it was not required… to bring the County into the lawsuit. We disagree,” Evander wrote.