The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal law enacted “to provide a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities.” 42 U.S.C. § 12101(b)(1). Congress enacted the ADA in 1990 to remedy widespread discrimination against disabled individuals.
Several federal courts have held that websites selling goods and services to the public fall under Section 508 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. In August 2017, Senior United States Southern District of Manhattan Judge Jack B. Weinstein held that websites qualify as “places of public accommodation” under the federal ADA statute. Since that decision, federal courts in New York have been inundated with putative class action lawsuits.
Legally, these lawsuits claim the defendant’s website is not fully accessible to, and independently usable by, visually- and/or hearing-impaired individuals. Under the ADA, a “failure to take such steps as may be necessary to ensure that no individual with a disability is excluded” from the “full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of” a website violates the law. 42 U.S.C. § 112181.
It can be quite difficult to understand the complex ADA requirements to ensure your company’s website is compliant. ADA Compliance LLC can help you identify problems to avoid costly litigation. ADA Compliance LLC is different than ordinary compliance companies; our process focuses on analyzing compliance and regulatory changes under the relevant legal and advisory guidelines. Our evaluation reports are written by attorneys and computer engineers with the use of our unique, proprietary software. The result is an evaluation report that is reliable, intelligible, and mitigates litigation risk.
