By Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis:  The Eleventh Circuit’s much-anticipated decision in Gil v. Winn Dixie sets a higher bar for plaintiffs in website accessibility lawsuits and creates a conflict among judicial circuits that could result in Supreme Court review; Gil promptly filed a Petition for Rehearing en banc.

After two and a half years of deliberation, the Court of
Continue Reading Eleventh Circuit Says Winn Dixie’s Inaccessible Website Does Not Violate The ADA

By Kristina M. LauneyMinh N. Vu

We’ve sheltered in place and finished our tally.  The numbers are in for total website accessibility lawsuit filings in federal courts in 2019, they show a small decrease from 2018. The total number of website accessibility lawsuits filed in federal court (i.e. lawsuits alleging that plaintiffs with a disability could not
Continue Reading The Curve Has Flattened for Federal Website Accessibility Lawsuits

By John W. Egan and Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis: A Committee in the New York State Senate aims to develop a legal standard for the accessibility of business websites under New York law, in response to the exponential increase in website accessibility litigation in the state. Whether state legislation could stem this tide, or instead make matters worse for
Continue Reading New York Lawmakers Plan To Address Website Accessibility

As we had predicted, the number of website accessibility lawsuits (i.e. lawsuits alleging that plaintiffs with a disability could not use websites because they were not coded to work with assistive technologies like screen readers, or otherwise accessible to them) filed in federal court under Title III of the ADA exploded in 2018 to at least 2258 – increasing
Continue Reading Number Of Federal Website Accessibility Lawsuits Nearly Triple, Exceeding 2250 In 2018

Seyfarth Synopsis: If ADA Title III federal lawsuit numbers continue to be filed at the current pace, 2018’s total will exceed 2017 by 30%, fueled largely by website accessibility lawsuit continued growth.

We have completed our mid-year analysis of the ADA Title III lawsuit numbers and the results are striking.

ADA Title III Lawsuits (All Types)Plaintiffs filed 4965
Continue Reading Website Access and Other ADA Title III Lawsuits Hit Record Numbers

Seyfarth Synopsis:  The number of federal lawsuits alleging inaccessible websites continues to increase, along with the number of law firms filing them.  Businesses should seek advice now on how to manage risk in this chaotic environment.

As we predicted, website accessibility lawsuits and threatened claims have become big business for the plaintiffs’ bar.  More law firms are filing lawsuits
Continue Reading Federal Website Lawsuits Spike; Community Banks Get Demand Letters*

Website accessibility is an evolving and complicated topic, about which we’ve written many times.  Thanks to delayed regulations and the Department of Justice’s changing positions on the issue, businesses have been caught off guard and plaintiffs’ attorneys are capitalizing on the uncertainty.  We have seen a surge of demand letters and lawsuits against public accommodations alleging inaccessible websites.  Like
Continue Reading Website Accessibility Lawsuits By the Numbers