13. DEFINITIONS.
The Parties agree and stipulate that the following terms shall be defined for purposes of this Consent Decree:
13.1 “ADA” shall mean and refer to the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. § 12101, et seq. in effect as of the Effective Date.
13.2 “ADA Standards” shall mean and refer to the Standards for Accessible Design as set forth at 28 C.F.R. pt. 36, Appendix A, published in 28 C.F.R. Part 36 (July 1, 2004).
13.3 “Alteration” solely for purposes of this Consent Decree, shall mean and refer to an alteration to an accessible guest room or guest room toilet room that (1) increases or decreases the number of accessible guest rooms as a result of construction; (2) increases or decreases the size of the guest room and/or guest room toilet room as a result of construction; or (3) changes the size or configuration of the guest room toilet room tub or shower (excluding replacing faucet/tub handles).
13.4 “Brand” means a trademark owned or controlled by HWI used to identify a chain of hotels in the United States operating under a common set of operating, design and construction standards.
13.5 “Brand Hotel” means a hotel in the United States operating under any of the Brands, including Franchised Hotels.
13.6 “Brand Standards” means the standards for each Brand contained in the integrated Brand Standards Manual for that Brand posted on HWI’s intranet, together with supplemental documents, guidelines and manuals of HWI referenced in the Brand Standards Manuals, which are usually updated on an annual basis.
13.7 “Consent Decree Date” is the date on which the Court enters this Consent Decree.
13.8 “Effective Date” is the one hundred and twentieth day after the Consent Decree Date.
13.9 “Franchised Hotel” means a hotel in the United States that (1) operates under one of the Brands pursuant to a franchise license agreement with HWI (or a subsidiary of HWI); (2) is not an Owned Hotel; and (3) is not a Managed Hotel.
13.10 “Joint Venture Hotel” means a hotel in the United States in which HWI (or one of its subsidiaries) has less than a 100% ownership interest but more than a 50% ownership interest.
13.11 “Managed Hotel” means a hotel in the United States that is operated by HWI (or one of its subsidiaries) pursuant to a management agreement with the third party owner of the real estate and improvements (including joint ventures in which HWI or an affiliate may hold a 50% or less ownership interest together with third parties), even if the third party owner also has a franchise agreement with HWI (or one of its subsidiaries).
13.12 “Owned Hotel” means a hotel in the United States in which HWI (or one of its subsidiaries) has a 100% fee or leasehold interest in the real estate and improvements.
13.13 “Permitted Transfer” means one of the following:
(1) Intra-Family Transfers: A transfer of interest in a Brand Hotel to or for the benefit of an immediate family member;
(2) Transfers Upon Death: A transfer of interest in a Brand Hotel held by a natural person upon that person's death in accordance with the will or laws of intestacy;
(3) Transfers of Privately Held Equity Interests: A transfer of interest in a Brand Hotel in which, after conveyance of the interest, a 25% or more cumulative interest in the Brand Hotel will have changed hands, so long as such event does not result in a change of control of the franchise.
(4) Affiliate Transfers: A transfer of interest that does not result in a change in control of the hotel;
(5) Bricks and Mortar Transfers: A transfer of interest in the Brand Hotel in which, after completion of the transaction, the pre-transfer hotel owner retains management control of hotel operations.
13.14 “Post-1993 Franchised Hotel” means a Franchised Hotel constructed for first occupancy after January 26, 1993.
13.15 “Post-1993 Joint Venture Hotel” means a Joint Venture Hotel constructed for first occupancy after January 26, 1993.
13.16 “Post-1993 Managed Hotel” means a Managed Hotel constructed for first occupancy after January 26, 1993.
13.17 “Post-1993 Owned Hotel” means an Owned Hotel constructed for first occupancy after January 26, 1993.
13.18 “Quality Assurance Inspections” means the periodic inspections by HWI’s Quality Assurance Department of each hotel in the system according to standard schedules applied across the system (e.g., annually for most hotels; semi-annually in some instances depending upon previously-identified standards issues) utilizing each Brand’s quality assurance checklists to verify appearance of items that can be checked in an average half-day review with a visible, non-intrusive inspection.
13.19 “Reservations System” means a proprietary telephonic and internet-based system maintained by HWI or its subsidiaries capable of taking reservations for Brand Hotels from customers located in the United States and its territories and possessions.
User Comments/Questions
Add Comment/Question