By Lotus Cannon and Minh Vu

Seyfarth synopsis:  Leading the country with 3,173 federal ADA Title III lawsuits in 2022, plaintiff-friendly court decisions will likely keep New York in the top spot.

It is no surprise that New York has become the nation’s leader in ADA Title III and website accessibility litigation, bypassing California by a substantial margin in

Continue Reading New York Continues to Be a Friendly Venue for ADA Title III Plaintiffs

By Ashley Jenkins & Minh Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis: After ten years, the Department of Justice (DOJ) finally issued a report on the accessibility of federal government websites which exposes widespread accessibility barriers.

The adage, “Do as I Say, Not as I Do” seems to be the motto of the federal government when it comes to compliance with digital accessibility standards.  

Continue Reading Long Overdue Report Shows Deficient Accessibility for Many Federal Websites

By Minh VuKristina Launey and Susan Ryan

Seyfarth Synopsis: The number of ADA Title III lawsuits filed in federal court dropped by 24 percent, the lowest since 2017, and California is no longer the epicenter.

ADA Title III case filings in federal court had been on a sharp upward trajectory since we started compiling these statistics in 2013.

Continue Reading ADA Title III Federal Lawsuits Numbers Are Down But Likely To Rebound in 2023

By John W. Egan and Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis: Under a new Consent Decree with the DOJ, 24 Arizona eye surgery centers can no longer require patients with mobility disabilities to pay for third-party services to transfer them on and off operating tables, must pay $1M in damages and penalties, and implement comprehensive ADA policies and training.   

We

Continue Reading Eye Surgery Centers to Pay $1M in Damages and Penalties to Resolve Alleged ADA Violations

By Kristina M. Launey & Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis: Plaintiffs filed 3,225 website accessibility lawsuits in federal court in 2022 – a 12% increase over 2021. 

2022 was another record setting year for website accessibility lawsuits filed in federal court.  The total number of lawsuits filed in federal court alleging that plaintiffs with a disability could not use websites

Continue Reading Plaintiffs Set a New Record for Website Accessibility Lawsuit Filings in 2022

Seyfarth Synopsis:  We predict another busy year on all fronts as DOJ continues to push its regulatory and enforcement agenda.

Photo showing hand holding a crystal ball

Lawsuit Numbers.  Last January, we predicted that roughly the same number of ADA Title III lawsuits would be filed in federal court in 2022 as in 2021, but halfway through 2022 it

Continue Reading ADA Title III Crystal Ball:  What’s Ahead for 2023?

By Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth synopsis:  Ninth Circuit judges are getting tougher on lawyers who represent serial plaintiffs by reducing their fees and threatening sanctions for citing outdated law.

In 2021, plaintiffs filed 11,452 federal lawsuits alleging violations of Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). More than half (5,930) of those were filed in California.  While most

Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Judges Express Displeasure with Serial Plaintiffs and Their Attorneys

By Minh N. Vu and John W. Egan

Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. Access Board published an ANPRM on September 21, 2022 requesting public comment on nine questions as it prepares draft regulations addressing the accessibility of self-service kiosks.

As previewed in the Spring 2022 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions (the “Agenda”) (as we previously covered), the U.S.

Continue Reading U.S. Access Board Issues Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking For Self-Service Kiosks

By Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis:  The California Court of Appeals decision that put an end to lawsuits against online only businesses in California and called out DOJ and Congress for inaction stays put after California Supreme Court denied plaintiff’s review request.

Update: On November 9, 2022, the California Supreme Court denied plaintiff’s request that the Court review the California
Continue Reading Websites Are Not A Public Accommodation Under the ADA, Says California Court of Appeals; CA Supreme Court Denies Review Petition

By Kristina Launey and Julia Sarnoff

Seyfarth Synopsis:  The Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Justice recently issued Guidance for telehealth accessibility with specific examples.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many health care providers and patients turned to telehealth as a way to provide and receive health care services while in lockdown.  Telehealth allows providers to see
Continue Reading Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Justice Issue Joint Guidance On Accessible Telehealth Services