The trend of federal judges siding with plaintiffs in website
accessibility cases continues, with recent rulings in California,
Florida, New York and Vermont. Federal judges have continued to deny
motions by defendants to dismiss their case and
have found that websites are subject to the ADA. These recent cases
continue to force business to seek out an automated ADA website compliance checker, like
AuditGenie.com, to scan their site and make their websites accessible to disabled individuals.
Recent Cases
Florida - Grocer Winn Dixie was sued for having an inaccessible
website, the federal judge found in favor of the plaintiff. The court
determined that the grocer violated Title III of the ADA, the judge
ordered injunctive relieve, the plaintiff
was awarded attorneys fees and costs.
New York - Five Guys' restaurant and retailer Blick. Two separate
federal judges denied motions to dismiss lawsuits against Five Guys'
restaurant and the retailer Blick. The lawsuits alleged that Five Guys'
restaurant and Blick violated the
ADA and New York State and City, and civil rights laws. Both judges
determined that websites are subject to the ADA as brick and mortar
business are. The judges further determined that the court did not need
to rely upon federal agency regulations to set
the standard for a website to violate ADA.
Vermont - Scribd. The federal district court in Vermont denied
Scribd's motion to dismiss the lawsuit. The judge determined that a
business who only conducts business on the internet is a place of public
accommodation under Title III of the
ADA.
California- Hobby Lobby. The federal judge hearing the case denied
Hobby Lobby's motion to dismiss the case. The case is now proceeding
to discovery.
Related Article: ADA Website Compliance Checker
Key Takeaways
- A business with a website does not have to have a physical location to be covered by ADA.
- Being in the process of correcting website accessibility errors does not alleviate wrongful behavior.
- Any website owner should immediately begin taking proactive steps to correct website accessibility errors and use an ADA website compliance checker, like AuditGenie.com, to scan their site.
- Expect more demand letters and more lawsuits against business with a web presence.
