2016

You are reviewing articles published in 2016.

Digital Access Legal Update – December 2016

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This post includes legal developments about digital accessibility between May 8, 2016 and December 12, 2016. This is the final update during the Obama administration, an eight year period that has seen an explosion of legal activity by the federal government advancing digital accessibility. I wrote two pieces about how I think the election will impact the legal push for digital accessibility. Read more…

60 Minutes Slams ADA, Boosts Trump Agenda

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On December 4th, 60 Minutes aired a 13 minute story on “drive by lawsuits” under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The segment, which followed a puff piece on Paul Ryan, questioned lawsuits filed by three lawyers, two of them being sued by their disabled clients for malpractice. Anderson Cooper, the show’s host, did not mention… Read more…

Digital Accessibility in the New Political Reality

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Five days before the election I wrote a post about what a Donald Trump presidency could do to the ongoing struggle for equality in the digital space. I wrote from my heart and from a place of fear. While I am despondent over the election, and still believe what I wrote on November 3, I realize it was only half the story. Now I feel a new responsibility: to remind us all that digital accessibility is here to stay. That despite obstacles the new administration will throw in the path of progress, disabled people will continue to insist on their civil rights. And the law, possibly battered and bruised, or temporarily in retreat, will be there to help. Read more…

Post-Trump Digital #A11y Legal Update

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As I’ve spoken and written about advancements in digital accessibility for the past few months, I’ve felt momentum is finally building for accessible information and technology, issues my clients, co-counsel and I have worked on for two decades. I’ve been excited to report how the United States Department of Justice is an accessibility champion and how the Deaf community is fighting (and winning) for the right to captioned media. It’s been gratifying to share information about disabled students claiming their right to accessible course materials, supported by the federal Department of Education. And I’ve been proud to report on the organizations that continue to work collaboratively, without lawsuits, in Structured Negotiation, the subject of my just-published book. All that is at stake in this election. Read more…

Book Launch Celebration!

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More than 100 people gathered in Berkeley, California on October 16, 2016 to help me celebrate the publication of Structured Negotiation, a Winning Alternative to Lawsuits. The atrium at the beautiful Ed Roberts Campus was perfect place for the party. Blind activists who have helped Structured Negotiation flourish as a way to resolve legal claims without lawsuits, members of the local disability community, and friends and colleagues from so many strands of my life turned out to celebrate the book despite the first big rain of the season. Read more…

Judging a Book by its Cover

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This post is about the hexagons on the cover of my forthcoming book — Structured Negotiation: a Winning Alternative to Lawsuits. The book will be published by the American Bar Association (ABA) next month. Hexagons are the perfect symbol for a book about cooperation, trust, and resolving legal claims without the conflict, expense and stress of traditional litigation. Read more…

Care about Digital Access? Let the U.S. Government Know

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The United States Department of Justice needs to hear that web accessibility regulations matter to disabled people. Can you help? This post will explain how. A new government notice  asks 123 questions about public sector web accessibility.  You can read the full notice, but you don’t have to read all the questions, or even answer any particular one.  The most important thing people who care about full digital equality and inclusion can do is tell the government why public sector web accessibility matters. Read more…

E*Trade Announces Accessibility Initiative

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NEW YORK, JUNE 21, 2016 – E*TRADE Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:ETFC) today announced an initiative to enhance its website, mobile applications, and desktop trading and investing platforms to make them more accessible for customers with disabilities. E*TRADE worked with representatives of the blind community to enhance its platforms for traders and investors with visual impairments: Having full access to financial investing tools is important for everyone. I’m happy that E*TRADE will make its web and mobile platforms more accessible, particularly for people who are blind or partially sighted, when it comes to all aspects of trading and investing.Pratik Patel, long-time E*TRADE customer who is blind Read more…

E*Trade Digital Accessibility Settlement Agreement

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The settlement agreement posted here details E*Trade’s commitment to improving the accessibility and usability of its website, mobile application and online trading platform for customers who are blind. The agreement was reached in Structured Negotiation; no lawsuit was needed or filed. The Law Office of Lainey Feingold and Linda Dardarian, of the Oakland civil rights firm Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian and Ho represented Pratik Patel and Victor Tsaran, two E*Trade customers, in the negotiation. E*Trade will be using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0, Level AA as its accessibility standard. The agreement identifies the International Standards Organization (ISO) 14289, also known as PDF/UA (PDF/Universal Accessibility) standard as the standard for PDF accessibility. Read more…