By Lotus Cannon and Minh Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis:  SDNY Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil dismisses with prejudice a website accessibility lawsuit with vague allegations about plaintiffs’ standing.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) has been a highly favored venue for serial plaintiffs bringing website accessibility lawsuits for years – at least in part because many

Continue Reading SDNY Judge Gets Tough on Serial Website Plaintiffs

John W. Egan, Julia N. Sarnoff and Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis: The W3C recently adopted Version 2.2 of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) which adds nine new success criteria for digital accessibility.

On October 5, 2023, the Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C) issued Version 2.2 of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).  Version 2.2 is the third iteration

Continue Reading W3C Adds Nine New Requirements In WCAG 2.2

By Minh N. Vu & John W. Egan

Seyfarth Synopsis:  SCOTUS’s refusal to clarify standing requirements for “tester” plaintiffs in ADA Title III lawsuits means it’s business as usual for the plaintiffs’ bar. 

Yesterday, SCOTUS issued its decision in Acheson v. Laufer which – to the disappointment of private businesses and the defense bar – leaves unanswered the question of

Continue Reading SCOTUS Punts on Whether ADA “Testers” Have Standing in Acheson v. Laufer

Synopsis:  SCOTUS denies serial plaintiff’s attempt to dismiss her case and avoid the court’s consideration of a critical legal issue in ADA Title III lawsuits – tester standing.

U.S. Supreme Court Building
U.S. Supreme Court Building

As we reported several weeks ago, serial plaintiff Deborah Laufer tried to evade the U.S. Supreme Court’s (SCOTUS) consideration of a very important legal issue —the standing of

Continue Reading SCOTUS Refuses to Dismiss Acheson Hotels v. Laufer Case Before Oral Argument Set For October 4

By Kristina M. Launey & Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis: AB 1757 would adopt WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the de facto standard for websites and mobile apps that can be accessed from California and impose liability for statutory damages on business establishments and website developers.

In a classic gut and amend move mid-way through the Legislative Session, on June

Continue Reading New California Assembly Bill on Website Accessibility Could Result in a Lawsuit Tsunami

By John W. Egan and Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth Synopsis: New York federal courts have generally been friendly to plaintiffs in website accessibility lawsuits, but a few recent decisions are demanding more of plaintiffs to establish standing.

While federal New York courts (particularly the Southern District) have historically been a friendly jurisdiction for ADA website plaintiffs, there have been

Continue Reading Plaintiff-Friendly New York Courts Change Course in Three Recent Decisions in Website Accessibility Cases

By John W. EganDov Kesselman, and Ashley S. Jenkins

A recent “Dear Colleague” letter issued jointly by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Education (OCR) places colleges and universities on notice of recent enforcement activities under Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section

Continue Reading OCR and DOJ Send A Message to Higher Ed:  Make Your Websites Accessible

By Minh N. Vu

Seyfarth synopsis:  A New York federal judge invokes the All Writs Act to dismiss a later-filed website accessibility lawsuit against the same defendant to protect the integrity of an existing consent decree that already requires the defendant to make its website accessible.

Businesses that are sued under Title III of the ADA for allegedly having a

Continue Reading A Consent Decree Can Provide Some Protection Against Future Website Accessibility Lawsuits

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