Successful Remediation Strategies for Websites Facing Accessibility Litigation

By Hiram Kuykendall | February 24, 2017 | | 4

How Do You Approach Making Your Website Accessible after Receiving a Demand Letter? Here Are 3 Accessibility Remediation Strategies to Consider This article on accessibility remediation strategies is reprinted, with updates and modifications, from the November 2016 issue of Mealey’s™ Litigation Report: Cyber Tech & E-Commerce. It was originally published as Successful Remediation Strategies For Websites Under Litigation. Mealey’s is a subscription-based information provider and a division of LexisNexis. Copyright ©2017[…]

Girl and Service Dog Get SCOTUS Win; Apps, Facilities, Websites in Accessibility Lawsuit Crosshairs

By Jack McElaney | February 23, 2017 | | 0

Accessibility in the News—02/23/17. Disability access and disability discrimination lawsuit articles ran the gamut this week: from discriminatory firing in the workplace to a rash of physical access lawsuits to an online retailer losing their request to dismiss a case over an inaccessible website. Private-sector businesses are continuing to be held responsible for making their online environments accessible—and it’s going beyond websites. Accessibility lawsuits have affected mobile apps, too: A ridesharing application[…]

Section 508 Refresh: How WCAG Impacts Federal Website Accessibility Requirements

By Hiram Kuykendall | February 22, 2017 | | 6

Section 508 and WCAG: What’s Changed for Federal Government Website Accessibility Requirements? This article on Section 508 and WCAG 2.0 reprinted, with updates and modifications, from the February 2017 issue of Mealey’s™ Litigation Report: Cyber Tech & E-Commerce. It was originally published as “Making Technology Accessible To People With Disabilities: Section 508 Refresh Incorporates Internationally Recognized WCAG Standards.” Mealey’s is a subscription-based information provider and a division of LexisNexis. Copyright[…]

Website Accessibility Lags in Business, Government, Education

By Jack McElaney | February 16, 2017 | | 0

Accessibility in the News—02/16/17. The admonition to get one’s website “ADA compliant” is spanning industries. This week, articles covered banking, retail, medical, education, and more. While U.S. government agencies have had clear website accessibility requirements in place, businesses and corporations are often caught off guard by demand letters or litigation. Industry publications are urging members to take a proactive approach to website accessibility: get an audit, follow a checklist, be informed. But[…]

Blind Website Users Drive Online Accessibility; Federal Guidance at Risk

By Jack McElaney | February 9, 2017 | | 1

Accessibility in the News—02/09/17. This week had several stories related to visual impairments and blindness, including tactile maps covered by National Geographic and improved image descriptions from Facebook. Even so, many barrier-laden websites still exist, hampering those with visual disabilities, including legally blind website users, from being able to use them easily or well. Accessibility litigation for such websites is on the rise, and as one article predicts, demands for accessible[…]

Web Accessibility Lawsuits Continue; Technology Opens Doors, Travel

By Jack McElaney | February 3, 2017 | | 0

Accessibility in the News—02/03/17. While there is certainly appropriate flag raising from various industries about the potential of website accessibility lawsuits, it’s important to highlight the phenomenal creativity that individuals and organizations bring to the table in harnessing technology rightly: This issue, Apple receives the esteemed Louis Braille Award. It’s an apt recognition for following Braille’s example of opening communication to those with visual impairments. In a stunning development, scientists[…]

Online ADA Accessibility: Industries Respond to Website Litigation, Urge Proactive Approach

By Jack McElaney | January 27, 2017 | | 0

Accessibility in the News—01/27/17. Established pre-internet, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) doesn’t explicitly require non-government websites be accessible—does it? In this issue, several industry publications—for home care, retail, banking, for example—are raising that flag with readers. Some educate and inform, others warn, but the general message is the same: digital accessibility is a real business issue. Left unaddressed, an inaccessible online presence could be courting ADA accessibility litigation. Others are already in the[…]

The VPAT^® and Section 508 Accessibility Compliance

By Hiram Kuykendall | January 20, 2017 | | 4

A Change in the Procurement Landscape for Federal and State Entities Covered under Section 508 This article reprinted, with updates and modifications, from the June 2016 issue of Mealey’s™ Litigation Report: Cyber Tech & E-Commerce. Mealey’s is a subscription-based information provider and a division of LexisNexis. Copyright ©2016 by Hiram Kuykendall. Editor’s note: The Department of Justice issued a joint report with the General Services Administration in February 2023 on[…]

U.S. Access Board Aligns Section 508 Accessibility Requirements to WCAG 2.0—Will the Department of Justice Follow Suit?

By Jack McElaney | January 19, 2017 | | 6

Accessibility in the News—01/19/17. At least six of our curated articles this week provide insights on the U.S. Access Board’s recent updates to Section 508 accessibility standards—the standards that federal government and government contractors use to make information technology, such as software and websites, accessible to all. The update aligns Section 508 organization and requirements with internationally accepted standards and ever-converging technologies. Be sure to check out the training opportunities[…]

Accessible Websites, Arts, Education, and Citizenry

By Jack McElaney | January 13, 2017 | | 1

Accessibility in the News—01/13/17. The recent update by the U.S. Access Board was perhaps the biggest news item this week. It formally aligns its website accessibility standards with other globally recognized standards, including WCAG 2.0., going as far as applying WCAG’s Level A and AA success criteria to websites, electronic documents, and software [Source: U.S. Access Board]. As Lexology reports, many see this as the writing on the wall for non-government websites[…]