News and Articles

$240,000.00 Jury Verdict in Blind Students’ Accessibility Lawsuit against Community College

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On May 26, 2023 a jury in Los Angeles, California awarded two blind students a little over $240,000.00 in their lawsuit against the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD). The suit was filed in 2017 by students Roy Payan and Portia Mason under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation… Read more… $240,000.00 Jury Verdict in Blind Students’ Accessibility Lawsuit against Community College

G is for Global: Tribute to Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2013

Posted on Updated on May 14, 2023
On May 9, 2013 people around the world will be gathering for workshops, seminars and other events to celebrate and recognize the second annual Global Accessibility Awareness Day, or GAAD. As explained on the GAAD Facebook page, the day is a community-driven effort whose goal is to focus one day to raise the profile of digital (web, software, mobile app/device, touch screen kiosk, etc.) accessibility and people with different disabilities. The Law Office of Lainey Feingold’s legal practice is entirely focused on digital accessibility, and this post is my tribute to the wonderful idea that is Global Accessibility Awareness Day. Congratulations to the grassroots community that is growing GAAD and especially to accessibility activist extraordinaire Jennison Asuncion whose enthusiasm and commitment is significantly responsible for the tremendous growth of this day of awareness. Read more… G is for Global: Tribute to Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2013

Early Win (and Settlement) for Deaf Plaintiff in VR Captioning Lawsuit

Posted on Updated on April 4, 2023
In 2020, lawyers for Dylan Panarra, a deaf man, filed a cutting edge lawsuit against the HTC corporation, one of the biggest electronics companies in the world. The lawsuit stated that HTC violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) because there is no captioning on the company’s Virtual Reality (“VR”) content. The first court ruling in the case came on April 15, 2022. Read more… Early Win (and Settlement) for Deaf Plaintiff in VR Captioning Lawsuit

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Global Accessibility Awareness Day

Posted on Updated on March 10, 2023
I finally read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. I thank the Twitter accessibility community for ensuring that I did not miss this 1979 classic. Adrian Roselli’s Twitter profile got me curious: What is a “hoopy frood” I wondered, and why does its towel location deserve a spot in a Twitter 160… Read more… The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Global Accessibility Awareness Day

Accessibility Statements Show Commitment to all Site Users

Posted on Updated on February 6, 2023
Last updated January 27, 2021 to add the new White House website statement. An important component of any Structured Negotiations settlement agreement involving web accessibility has been a company’s commitment to maintain an Accessibility Statement (previously called an Accessibility Information Page, or AIP. The ideal page has details about the company’s web accessibility policy, details about other accessibility services, and a phone and web-based method for the public to forward accessibility concerns, both positive and negative. The page should be easy to find on the site, preferably linked from the home page and all page footers, and searchable through the site search engine. Accessibility Statement resources and Statements of some of the largest entities in the United States are included in this article. Read more… Accessibility Statements Show Commitment to all Site Users

Deja Vu All Over Again? DOJ Announces Intent to Adopt Web Accessibility Regulations for State and Local Governments

Posted on Updated on January 9, 2023
The ancient Greek story of Sisyphus tells of a doomed King sentenced forever to push a boulder uphill, only to witness it tumble down again just as he reaches the summit. The centuries-old story carries over to modern day English in the phrase “sisyphean task.” Dictionary.com defines such a task as one that is “seemingly… Read more… Deja Vu All Over Again? DOJ Announces Intent to Adopt Web Accessibility Regulations for State and Local Governments

Two US Government Agencies Warn about Hiring Technology that Discriminates against Disabled Applicants

Posted on Updated on January 1, 2023
The unemployment rate for people with disabilities in the United States is at an unacceptable high rate. As the US Bureau of Labor Statistics stated in a February 2022 informational release: “Across all educational attainment groups, unemployment rates for persons with a disability were higher than those for persons without a disability.” Two new resources from the US federal government address one type of barrier to the employment of disabled people: Algorithmic and Artificial Intelligence (AI) hiring tools that discriminate. Read more… Two US Government Agencies Warn about Hiring Technology that Discriminates against Disabled Applicants