District Judge Rules That Website Must Accommodate The Disabled

Clients who distribute their products or services, in large part, through the use of the Internet should take note of a recent federal court decision under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). If followed in other courts, this decision could require companies to make significant changes in their website in order to comply with ADA requirements.

A federal district court ruled that a company selling its products exclusively through a website, and with no physical store of any kind, is a place of public accommodation under the ADA and must provide access for visually impaired computer users. National Fed. of the Blind v. Scribd, Inc., No. 14-CV-162 (D. Vt. March 19, 2015). In denying a defense motion to dismiss on the "public accommodations" issue, Judge William K. Sessions III allowed the plaintiffs to proceed with their case on the theory that the ADA requires Internet retailers to provide non-visual means for blind consumers to access a site's content. Such