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No. 9367771
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
ED HULL V. WILLIAM LITTLE
No. 9367771 · Decided December 20, 2022
No. 9367771·Ninth Circuit · 2022·
FlawFinder last updated this page Apr. 2, 2026
Case Details
Court
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Decided
December 20, 2022
Citation
No. 9367771
Disposition
See opinion text.
Full Opinion
NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS DEC 20 2022
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
ED HULL, an individual, No. 21-56252
Plaintiff-Appellant, D.C. No.
2:21-cv-05297-PA-PD
v.
WILLIAM LITTLE, an individual, MEMORANDUM*
Defendant-Appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Central District of California
Percy Anderson, District Judge, Presiding
Submitted June 14, 2022**
Pasadena, California
Before: RAWLINSON and CHRISTEN, Circuit Judges, and SIMON,*** District
Judge.
This appeal involves a challenge to the terms of a permanent injunction
issued under Rule 65 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. We review de novo a
*
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
**
The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
***
The Honorable Michael H. Simon, United States District Judge for the
District of Oregon, sitting by designation.
challenge to an injunction on specificity grounds under Rule 65(d).1 Premier
Commc’ns Network, Inc. v. Fuentes, 880 F.2d 1096, 1100 (9th Cir. 1989). For the
reasons explained below, we conclude that the challenged injunction sufficiently
complies with the specificity requirement of Rule 65(d).
Ed Hull (Hull) filed this action against William Little (Little), the owner of
real property containing Kenny’s Q Bar-B-Q restaurant. Hull alleged that the
property violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as well as state law,
by failing to provide an adequate disabled parking space, proper disabled parking
space signage, and accessible routes of travel. Hull, a permanently disabled
individual, alleged that Little’s ADA violation prevented Hull from visiting and
enjoying Kenny’s Q Bar-B-Q on two occasions.
In his complaint, Hull did not request a specific timeframe for the
completion of the remedial work. Little did not file a responsive pleading or
otherwise appear in the lawsuit, and the district court entered an order of default. In
Hull’s proposed default judgment, he requested an order directing Little to
complete the required work within 180 days. The district court granted Hull’s
motion for default judgment and ordered Little “to provide accessible exterior
paths of travel, accessible ramps, accessible parking, and an access aisle with
1
Rule 65(d) requires every order granting an injunction to “state its terms
specifically.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 65(d)(1)(B).
2
compliant signage” at the property. The district court, however, did not set a
deadline for the completion of that work.
On appeal, Hull argues that the judgment fails to meet the specificity
requirement under Rule 65(d) because it does not include a deadline for
compliance. Because Hull failed to request a deadline in his complaint and because
our precedent does not dictate the level of specificity sought by Hull, we affirm.
We note that we have not previously explicitly addressed whether
Rule 65(d) requires a mandatory injunction to include a deadline, or timeframe, for
compliance. In Fortyune v. Am. Multi-Cinema, Inc., 364 F.3d 1075, 1086-87 (9th
Cir. 2004), we reviewed a challenge to the specificity of a permanent injunction
ordering compliance with the ADA. The injunction in Fortyune required the
defendant, a movie theater operator, to modify its policies regarding seating
options for wheelchair-bound patrons in its theaters but included no deadline to do
so. Id. at 1079. On appeal, the defendant, challenging the enforceability of the
injunction, argued that the injunction violated Rule 65(d) because it failed to
specify how the defendant should modify its policies to provide adequate seating
options. Id. at 1087. We explained that we “will not set aside injunctions under
Rule 65(d) unless they are so vague that they have no reasonably specific
meaning.” Id. (internal quotation marks omitted) (quoting United States v. V-1 Oil
Co., 63 F.3d 909, 913 (9th Cir. 1995)). We held that Rule 65(d) does not require
3
the district court to “elucidate how to enforce the injunction.” Id. (emphasis in
original). Thus, we concluded that the injunction did not violate Rule 65(d)
because it was “quite clear,” “even though it decline[d] to provide AMC with
explicit instructions on the appropriate means to accomplish [its] directive.” Id.
Similarly, in Molski v. Foley Ests. Vineyard & Winery, LLC, 531 F.3d 1043,
1050 (9th Cir. 2008), we held that the district court did not abuse its discretion by
ordering the defendant to bring its property into compliance with the ADA. The
injunction in Molski, like the injunction here, did not include any specific deadline
for compliance. See Molski v. Foley Ests. Vineyard & Winery, LLC, No. CV 03-
9393 CBM (RCX), 2006 WL 8447962, at *10 (C.D. Cal. Aug. 23, 2006), aff’d in
part, rev’d in part, and remanded, 531 F.3d 1043 (9th Cir. 2008).
AFFIRMED.
4
Plain English Summary
NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS DEC 20 2022 MOLLY C.
Key Points
01NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS DEC 20 2022 MOLLY C.
02COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT ED HULL, an individual, No.
03WILLIAM LITTLE, an individual, MEMORANDUM* Defendant-Appellee.
04This appeal involves a challenge to the terms of a permanent injunction issued under Rule 65 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Frequently Asked Questions
NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS DEC 20 2022 MOLLY C.
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This case was decided on December 20, 2022.
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