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 Vu and John Egan

Seyfarth Synopsis: Three businesses prevail in website accessibility lawsuits in New York and California. 

Defending website accessibility lawsuits can be an expensive and difficult battle for public accommodations, but there have been a few bright spots for businesses this summer.

1.     On July 14, 2021, Judge Brian Cogan of the United States District Court
Continue Reading Businesses Score a Few Recent Wins in Website Accessibility Lawsuits

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

Seyfarth Synopsis: Congressmen Budd, Hudson, and Correa reintroduce the Online Accessibility Act which would govern the application of the ADA to websites and mobile applications.

By Kristina M. Launey

On February 18, 2021, U.S. Representatives Ted Budd (R-NC), Richard Hudson (R-NC), and Lou Correa (D-CA) re-introduced the Online Accessibility Act in Congress as H.R. 1100. The bill would codify the
Continue Reading Renewed Attempt at ADA Web Accessibility Legislation

Today, Thursday, May 21, 2020, is the ninth annual Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD).  The purpose of GAAD is to provide opportunities for conversing, thinking, and learning about digital access and inclusion for people with different disabilities.  There is a ton of useful programming, which may be of interest to businesses’ in-house counsel, accessibility program managers and employees, IT and
Continue Reading Global Accessibility Awareness Day Educational Events – TODAY! May 21, 2020

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

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: The Department of Transportation says that an airline’s provision of an accessible alternative website violates the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), so are such websites an acceptable means of providing access under the ADA?

In response to the onslaught of website accessibility lawsuits against public accommodations covered by Title III of the ADA, some website accessibility consulting companies
Continue Reading Airline’s Provision of Alternative Accessible Website Triggers Hefty Fine Under the Air Carrier Access Act

Seyfarth Synopsis: New Affordable Care Act and Medicaid Regulations will require covered entities providing health care programs and services have accessible electronic information technology, including accessible websites.

While we continue to wait for new regulations for the websites of state and local governments, federal agencies and public accommodations, two new regulations from the Department of Health and Human Services
Continue Reading New Healthcare Regulations Impose Accessible Technology Requirements