Legal Updates

The articles listed on this page are about legal developments related to web, mobile (digital), technology and information accessibility. These articles include advocacy initiatives by the Law Office of Lainey Feingold and her co-counsel and clients, and also by other lawyers, organizations, and government agencies. If you are looking for Lainey Feingold's cases, please visit the Settlements page. The posts here are for informational purposes only. If you think you have a legal claim you should contact a lawyer.

Companies are Losing Web Cases: Spend Money on Web Access, not Lawyers

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In less than two months, four different federal judges have said “Yes” to website accessibility. These cases, from Florida and New York, are a wake-up call to every business in the United States that serves the public: If you have a website, make it accessible so everyone can use it, including disabled people. Every business has a budget; every business watches how money is spent. These cases are but the most recent in a long-string of wake-up calls with a simple message: Spend your hard-earned dollars on accessibility, not on lawyers to fight it. Read more…

Web Accessibility for Grocers: Winn-Dixie Wasn’t Paying Attention

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Last month the Winn-Dixie grocery chain lost the very first trial under the Americans with Disabilities Act about the accessibility of a private company’s website. A blind shopper had sued the chain when he couldn’t access online coupons and other parts of the company’s website. The judge’s verdict was big news; unlike most accessibility stories it was covered in the mainstream media. But web accessibility for grocery stores is nothing new. If Winn-Dixie had been paying attention, it would have known over three years ago that grocery chains were making their websites accessible. Winn-Dixie should not have waited for the legal knock on the door. When it came, it should not have put up a fight. Read more…

March 2017 Digital Accessibility Legal Update

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This post includes legal developments about digital accessibility between December 13, 2016 and March 6, 2017. It supplements Lainey Feingold’s digital accessibility legal update presentations, including the legal update sessions at the 2017 CSUN Assistive Technology Conference. The series is illustrated by a toolbox because law has proven an effective tool to improve the accessibility and usability of digital content, print information and technology for everyone. There are many ways to use the law, reflected by the many tools in the toolbox and by the updates in this post. Read more…

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…

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…

Spring 2016 Digital Accessibility Legal Update

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This post includes recent legal developments about digital accessibility between December 11, 2015 and May 7, 2016. The update is part of an occasional series about legal activity impacting technology and information access for people with disabilities. Digital accessibility is a civil right, and there is a lot happening in the legal space. Read more…

Talking Prescription Labels: Spring 2016 Update

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Without accessible prescription labels, blind people are forced to guess about the medication in their prescription containers. Would a pharmacy give medication to sighted consumers without a label? Of course not. A growing number of pharmacy chains and health care organizations in the United States now offer talking prescription labels and other forms of accessible prescription information for customers who cannot read standard print. This post will give you the details. Read more…

Digital Accessibility Legal Update (December 2015)

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This post is part of an occasional series about recent legal developments impacting technology and information access for people with disabilities. This post covers activity from August 11, 2015 through December 10, 2015. This update includes Department of Justice activity, the settlement of cases against Scribd and the General Services Administration, Structured Negotiation with Humana, an important new voting rights case, and other developments. Read more…