By: John W. Egan and Minh N. Vu
Seyfarth Synopsis: A recent decision holding that web-only businesses cannot be sued over the accessibility of their website under the ADA is the first of its kind in the Southern District of New York and may cause forum-shopping serial plaintiffs and their counsel to shift to state court.
The Chief Judge Laura
Continue Reading SDNY Chief Judge to ADA Plaintiff: Court Closed for Business to Online-Only ADA Web Cases
By Minh N. Vu and John W. Egan
Seyfarth synopsis: Public accommodations planning to add EV charging stations to their properties should take note of these proposed guidelines and file comments by November 4, 2024.
Recognizing that more and more retailers, shopping malls, lodging facilities, gas stations, and restaurants are providing EV charging stations (“EVCS”) for customer use on their
Continue Reading U.S. Access Board Issues Proposed Rule for Accessible Electric Vehicle Charging StationsBy Minh Vu, Kristina Launey and Susan Ryan
Seyfarth Synopsis: The decline in ADA Title III lawsuits that began in 2022 comes to a halt in 2024 and California retakes its mantle of “national filing hotspot.”
ADA Title III filings have decreased each year since 2022. 2024 changes the narrative with an uptick in filings, albeit a small one.
Continue Reading 2024 Mid-Year Report: ADA Title III Federal Lawsuit Numbers Rebound (A Little)
By Minh Vu and Paul Kehoe
Many individuals with disabilities are choosing other power-driven mobility devices (OPMDs) such as Segways™ over traditional wheelchairs and scooters to provide them with enhanced mobility. In response, as we previously reported, the Department of Justice (DOJ) amended its regulations in 2010 to require businesses to allow the use of OPMDs in their facilities unless the business can establish that the particular OPMD cannot be operated safely within any particular facility. Three years later, businesses still have very little practical guidance from the courts and DOJ about when they may limit the use of these devices.
The regulations specify that businesses must analyze five factors to determine whether they must allow a particular OPMD to be used in a specific facility, including (i) the type, size, weight, dimensions and speed of the device, (ii) the facility’s pedestrian traffic, (iii) the facility’s design and operational characteristics, (iv) whether legitimate safety requirements can be established to permit the safe operation of another OPMD in that facility, and (v) whether the use of that OPMD creates a substantial environmental harm or conflicts with federal land management laws. But there is little guidance on how to apply these factors to specific situations.
The DOJ’s position is that “in the vast majority of circumstances,” public accommodations would have to admit Segways™ and other OPMDs. In its technical guidance document, ADA Update, A Primer for Small Businesses, the DOJ encourages businesses to develop written policies based on these factors specifying when OPMDs will be permitted on their premises and to communicate those policies to the public. However, it does not give examples of scenarios in which OPMDs can be excluded, other than to say a business may be able to limit OPMD use at certain times of the day when a facility has a high volume of pedestrian traffic.
Continue Reading Do I Have to Let Segways™ Used by Persons With Disabilities Into My Business?