We continue to report on the plethora of serial plaintiffs who have collectively filed thousands of website accessibility lawsuits, primarily against small businesses, in state and federal courts throughout the country. These boilerplate lawsuits generally allege that these businesses’ websites are inaccessible to visually impaired individuals who use screen-reading software, thus denying them full and equal access to the goods or services offered on the websites.
Several relatively new plaintiffs are now on the scene, including Paradise Morgan, Lynn Zelvin, Hakan Durantas, Henry Tucker, and Colette Stroude, who, according to court records, have collectively filed 112 lawsuits, the vast majority of which were filed this year.
- Morgan has filed 17 lawsuits in 2023. She is represented in New York by Shaked Law Group, PC, which has filed more than 1,100 similar lawsuits.
- Zelvin has filed 30 lawsuits since September 11, 2023, and Durantas has filed 21 lawsuits since July 28, 2023. They are represented by Mars Khaimov, who has filed more than 1,200 similar lawsuits.
- Tucker has filed 33 lawsuits since October 2019, including two lawsuits within the last week. He is represented by Gottlieb & Associates, which has filed more than 1,700 similar lawsuits.
- Stroude has filed seven lawsuits since October 20, 2023. She is represented by Stein Saks, PLLC, which has filed more than 1,600 similar lawsuits.
As we have reported on numerous occasions, both state and federal lawmakers have taken steps in recent years to curb website accessibility lawsuits; however, to date, no legislation has been passed. In the absence of legislation or regulations promulgated by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), we recommend that businesses operating a website, mobile application, or both take steps to ensure that these online systems are accessible to users with disabilities and otherwise comply with federal, state, and local disability laws in accordance with DOJ guidance issued in March 2022.
It should be noted that the DOJ recently submitted for publication in the Federal Register a notice of rulemaking under Title II of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) that aims to improve access to websites and mobile applications for people with disabilities by creating a minimum standard for state and local governments to meet existing ADA obligations.
In the unfortunate event your business is served with one of these website accessibility lawsuits, please do not hesitate to contact the attorneys at Barclay Damon. We will continue to monitor the development of these cases.
If you have any questions regarding the content of this alert, please contact Rob Thorpe, partner, at rthorpe@barclaydamon.com, or another member of the firm’s Labor & Employment or Commercial Litigation Practice Areas or Hotels, Hospitality & Food Service Team.
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