Seyfarth Synopsis: California will soon have a new law requiring WCAG 2.0 AA compliance for state agencies’ websites by 2019.
On October 14, 2017 California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law AB 434, which will create a new Government Code section 11546.7 and require, beginning July 1, 2019, state agencies and state entities to post on their website home
Continue Reading California Passes Website Accessibility Requirements Applicable to State Agencies
Seyfarth Synopsis: In denying Dave & Buster’s motion to dismiss and for summary judgment, a federal judge said that telephonic access might be an alternative to having an accessible website, but cannot decide until the record is much more developed.
No court has yet decided whether a public accommodation can comply with Title III of the ADA’s equal access mandate
Continue Reading Telephone Access Might Be Valid Alternative to Accessible Website, But Court Needs More
Seyfarth Synopsis: The number of federal lawsuits alleging inaccessible websites continues to increase, along with the number of law firms filing them. Businesses remain well-advised to seek advice from counsel experienced in website accessibility to manage risk.
Different year, same news: Website accessibility lawsuits show no signs of slowing down. In fact, with the DOJ’s recent placement of website
Continue Reading Website Accessibility Lawsuit Filings Still Going Strong
Seyfarth Synopsis: Two New York federal judges recently said that the ADA covers websites (even those not connected to a physical place) and one held that working on improving the accessibility of one’s website does not make the ADA claim moot.
The number of district court judges siding with plaintiffs in website accessibility cases is increasing. On June 13, a
Continue Reading Two New York Federal Judges Refuse to Dismiss Website Accessibility Cases
Seyfarth Synopsis: In amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Justice Department agreed with the Fifth Circuit and defendant Coca-Cola that a vending machine is not a place of public accommodation and that public accommodations can comply with the ADA by providing assistance to customers in lieu of having accessible self-service equipment.
The Supreme Court recently asked the U.S.
Continue Reading Justice Department Says Vending Machines Are Not Places Of Public Accommodation—And So Much More
Seyfarth Synopsis: Trump Administration’s first Unified Agenda reveals DOJ has placed web accessibility, medical equipment, and furniture rulemakings under Title II and III of the ADA on Inactive List.
Federal agencies typically provide public notice of the regulations that are under development twice a year in the Unified Regulatory Agenda. The first Agenda the Trump Administration issued, which went
Continue Reading DOJ Places Website Rulemaking on the “Inactive” List
The increase of ADA Title III lawsuits in federal court shows no signs of stopping. From January 1 through April 30, 2017, 2629 lawsuits were filed — 412 more than during the same period in 2016. That’s a whopping 18 percent increase. As we previously reported, the total number of lawsuits filed in federal court in 2016 was 6,601
Continue Reading 2017 Federal ADA Title III Lawsuit Numbers 18% Higher than 2016
Seyfarth Synopsis: Two recent decisions by federal judges to dismiss website accessibility lawsuits may cause more public accommodations to fight instead of settle these suits, but businesses must continue to weigh many factors before making that decision.
The litigation tide might be turning for public accommodations choosing to fight lawsuits brought by blind individuals claiming that the businesses’ websites
Continue Reading Public Accommodations are Starting to Win Website Accessibility Lawsuits
Seyfarth Synopsis: Fewer online videos from UC Berkeley will be available to the public as a result of a DOJ demand that the videos have closed captioning.
Starting March 15, 2017, more than 20,000 videos of classroom lectures and podcasts on UC Berkeley’s YouTube and iTunes channels will no longer be available for public viewing, according to a recent statement
Continue Reading UC Berkeley To Remove More Than 20,000 Online Videos From Public Access In Response To DOJ Captioning Demand
Seyfarth Synopsis: With the recent proliferation of web accessibility demand letters and lawsuits, businesses often ask whether settling a claim with one plaintiff will bar future lawsuits brought by different plaintiffs. One federal judge recently said no.
Plaintiffs Rachel Gniewskowski, R. David New, and Access Now, Inc.—represented by Carlson, Lynch, Kilpela & Sweet—sued retailer Party City in the Western District
Continue Reading Court Says Settlement Agreement Does Not Bar Later Website Accessibility Lawsuit by a Different Plaintiff