By Kristina M. Launey & Minh N. Vu
Seyfarth Synopsis: ADA Title III website accessibility lawsuits filed in federal courts in 2021 jumped 14% over 2020, besting the 12% 2020 increase aided by a huge November 2021 spike in filings.
The numbers are in for total website accessibility lawsuit filings in federal courts in 2021, and they show a
Continue Reading Federal Website Accessibility Lawsuits Increased in 2021 Despite Mid-Year Pandemic Lull
By Minh N. Vu
Seyfarth synopsis: The DOJ issued a new guidance on website accessibility that contains basic information about the ADA’s requirements for lay people but no new information for legal practitioners.
We can only speculate as to whether it was a response to the recent demand of 181 disability advocacy groups for regulations on website accessibility, but this
Continue Reading The DOJ’s New Guidance Says Website Accessibility is an Enforcement Priority but Provides No New Legal Insights
By Kristina M. Launey and Minh Vu
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Eleventh Circuit has refused to reconsider its decision to vacate its prior order and the trial court’s judgment because of mootness; meanwhile disability rights advocates demand regulatory action from DOJ on accessible websites.
On March 2, 2022, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals denied Winn-Dixie’s request that the full panel
Continue Reading As the Winn-Dixie Saga Finally Concludes in Florida, 181 Advocacy Groups Urge DOJ to Issue Website Accessibility Regulations
By Minh Vu, Kristina Launey and Susan Ryan
Seyfarth Synopsis: Plaintiffs continue filing ADA Title III lawsuits in record numbers with no sign of stopping.
As regular readers of this blog know, the number of ADA Title III lawsuits filed in federal court in 2020 dipped slightly under 11,000, but the plaintiffs’ bar came roaring back in 2021. There
Continue Reading ADA Title III Federal Lawsuit Filings Hit An All Time High
Seyfarth Synopsis: The DOJ issued guidance on two COVID-era access issues, confirming outdoor business operations must comply with the ADA and prohibiting medical providers from adopting blanket bans on companion accompaniment.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently updated its Common Questions About COVID and the ADA (“Common Questions”) to include information on issues of interest to businesses
Continue Reading DOJ Updates Its COVID-19 and ADA FAQs with Information About “Streateries” and Medical Facilities’ Visitor Policies
By Minh Vu
Seyfarth synopsis: Winn-Dixie has asked the Eleventh Circuit to recall its decision to dismiss the appeal and underlying lawsuit as moot and that the decision be reconsidered by a full panel of Eleventh Circuit judges.
A few weeks ago we reported on the Eleventh Circuit’s decision to dismiss as moot the appeal filed by Winn-Dixie challenging a
Continue Reading Gil v. Winn-Dixie: It’s Not Over Yet
By: Ashley S. Jenkins and Minh N. Vu
Seyfarth Synopsis: Hotels have been fighting a tsunami of hotel reservations website lawsuits with good results so far.
In the past few years, a dozen or so plaintiffs represented by a handful of law firms have sued many hundreds of hotels for allegedly not providing enough accessibility information about their accessible rooms
Continue Reading A Status Update on Hotel Reservations Website Lawsuits
By Minh N. Vu
Seyfarth synopsis: We predict 2022 will look a lot like 2021 with roughly the same number of lawsuits and DOJ pushing the boundaries of the ADA.
Like 2020, 2021 was a tough year for businesses. Still dealing with the constantly-changing COVID-19 landscape, businesses were also bombarded with what may be another record number of ADA Title
Continue Reading Crystal Ball 2022: More Aggressive DOJ Enforcement, More Lawsuits, and Maybe a New Rulemaking.
By Julia N. Sarnoff and John W. Egan
Seyfarth Synopsis: A massive surge in website accessibility lawsuits filed in the Southern District of New York suggests some holiday forum shopping by the plaintiffs-side bar.
The Seyfarth ADA Title III Team wishes all of our readers a very happy holiday season!
As many of you already know, our Team monitors
Continue Reading Forum Shopping For a Website Lawsuit Over the Holidays? Look No Further than the SDNY.
By Minh N. Vu
Seyfarth synopsis: The Ninth Circuit holds that a restaurant’s practice of exclusively providing service at the drive-through and refusing to serve pedestrians at the drive-through line does not violate the ADA.
Many fast food restaurants nowadays take food orders and deliver food exclusively at the drive-through window during certain business hours. Due to safety concerns, at
Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Says Restaurant Does Not Discriminate Against the Blind By Providing Only Drive-Through Service