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 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 Katherine Corbett, Judith Pelaez, Sumaya Hussein, Daniel Barlow, and William Odonnell, who, according to court records, have collectively filed 104 website accessibility lawsuits, many of which within the last few months. These plaintiffs are represented by Equal Access Law Group, PLLC, which has filed more than 1,000 similar lawsuits in federal courts since August 2024 as well as numerous lawsuits in state courts.
- Corbett has filed nine lawsuits since March 13, 2026.
- Pelaez has filed nine lawsuits since February 10, 2026.
- Hussein has filed 11 lawsuits since February 3, 2026.
- Barlow has filed six lawsuits since March 20, 2026.
- Odonnell has filed 32 lawsuits since September 18, 2025.
As we’ve reported previously, 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 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.
In the unfortunate event your business is served with a website accessibility lawsuit, 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 & Complex Trials Practice Areas or Hotels, Hospitality & Food Service Team.
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