Department of Justice

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Seyfarth Synopsis:  An executive order from President Trump will likely halt the Justice Department’s public accommodations website rulemaking.

President Obama’s Department of Justice (DOJ) had stated that proposed regulations for public accommodations websites would be issued in 2018—eight years after the agency began its rulemaking process.  The likelihood of such a proposed regulation being issued now is virtually non-existent.

Among…
Continue Reading Executive Order Likely Dooms Website Regulations for Public Accommodations

Seyfarth Synopsis: Fighting a web accessibility lawsuit could invite DOJ’s intervention, as did a Florida retailer’s recent Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings.

Fighting a website accessibility lawsuit is very tempting to many frustrated businesses, but can be a risky decision. One such risk – Department of Justice intervention in the lawsuit – came to fruition for one such business…
Continue Reading A Cautionary Tale: DOJ Intervenes in Another Web Accessibility Lawsuit

Seyfarth Synopsis: DOJ published regulations today requiring that movie theaters throughout the United States provide closed captioning and audio description to patrons with disabilities for digital movies distributed with these features.

Today, the Department of Justice (DOJ) published its final rule requiring theaters throughout the United States to provide closed captioning and audio description (if available) for movies exhibited in…
Continue Reading DOJ Publishes Final Rule Requiring Movie Theaters Nationwide to Provide Closed Captioning and Audio Description

Seyfarth Synopsis: DOJ announced today an extension to October 7, 2016 for the public to submit comments on the SANPRM for state and local government websites.

In May of this year the Department of Justice surprised us by issuing a Supplemental Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (SANPRM), rather than – as all expected – actually issuing a proposed regulation for…
Continue Reading DOJ Extends Comment Period for ADA Title II SANPRM, Cites Impact on Title III Rule

Seyfarth Synopsis:  If you would rather not read the 30-page small print Federal Register notice, this summary will provide you with what you need to know about the Justice Department’s most recent official pronouncement on web accessibility.

As we reported, last week DOJ issued a lengthy Supplemental ANPRM (SANPRM) for state and local government websites, which some commentators have…
Continue Reading Attention Public Accommodations: DOJ’s Recent Rulemaking Action for State and Local Government Websites Reveals its Current Thinking on Web Accessibility

This morning, on Global Accessibility Awareness Day, DOJ participated by issuing its Spring 2016 unified agenda, including upcoming regulatory actions on web accessibility and movie captioning.

Click on the links to the right in the bullets below for the lowdown on each rule, but here are a few highlights:

AA65: State and Local Government web accessibility regulations.  No need…
Continue Reading On Global Accessibility Awareness Day, DOJ Releases Agenda Indicating Progress in 2016; Omits Title III

Time concept: Hourglass on computer keyboard backgroundSeyfarth Synopsis: Public entities and private businesses have been waiting for years – since 2010 – for the Department of Justice to issue regulations setting a standard for website accessibility.  The DOJ has announced that it is stepping backward rather than moving forward in that process, withdrawing its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Title II regulations applicable to public entities, …
Continue Reading Web Reg “Do Over?”: DOJ Withdraws Title II Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Issues Supplemental Advanced Notice Seeking Further Comments

Seyfarth Synopsis: NYC recently passed a law requiring that its government agency websites meet accessibility standards.  Other state and local governments may follow NYC’s lead and enact accessibility standards for government agencies, contractors and even public accommodations in the absence of regulations from DOJ.

On March 14, New York City became the first major municipality in the United States to…
Continue Reading New York City Enacts Accessibility Standards for Government Websites

By Kevin Fritz

Gavel on sounding blockWhen people think of the term “public accommodation,” images of restaurants, storefronts, and hotels come to mind.  The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) recent Consent Decree with a moving company provides an important reminder that service providers can also be considered a “place of public accommodation” covered by Title III of the ADA.  Title III of the ADA…
Continue Reading DOJ Consent Decree Is A Reminder That Service Providers Are Public Accommodations

As we reported in July of 2014, the DOJ is working on final regulations that would require movie theatres with digital screens to show movies with closed captioning and audio description.

At a cost to the industry that DOJ estimated will be between $138.1 and $275.7 million, the proposed regulations would require that all movie theatres with digital screens…
Continue Reading Regulatory Update: Movie Captioning and Audio Description Regulations in the Final Stages of Review