Why ADA Lawsuits Will Continue to Rise in 2024

The world is becoming increasingly digitized — and it’s opened up numerous opportunities and yielded significant benefits for users worldwide. Yet, people with disabilities are being overlooked in digitization efforts, many are only able to fully access just 3% of the web.

As digital platforms become even more integral to daily life, businesses are facing more pressure to comply with digital accessibility regulations included in the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The rise in ADA lawsuits in the last several years only increases the pressure on organizations to provide accessible digital content. Despite a slight decrease in ADA lawsuits last year (down 14% from 2022), ADA lawsuits are likely to increase in 2024.

Why are ADA lawsuits on the rise? We’ll provide an overview of ADA lawsuits in the U.S. and why they were filed below. But first, a quick refresher on the ADA and the standards organizations need to follow to be considered ADA-compliant.

What is the Americans with Disabilities Act?

Put simply, the ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in public places. While commonly associated with physical spaces and providing accommodations like wheelchair ramps or elevators, the ADA also applies to online spaces. Applying the law to the digital realm ensures individuals with disabilities can access and use online content.

The ADA is made up of three titles:

• Title I: Title I prohibits employers from discriminating against people with disabilities in employment spaces. For example, organizations must ensure individuals with disabilities have the same opportunities and benefits as those without disabilities. 
• Title II: New changes to Title II of the ADA now require state and local government entities, including state executive legislatures, school districts, and public education institutions, to provide accessible online content. Title II also requires that any content made by a third party and made available by a government agency be accessible.
• Title III: Title III of the ADA applies to public accommodations and services operated by private entities, including hotels, retail stores, restaurants, movie theaters, sports stadiums, etc. Under Title III, these facilities cannot discriminate against individuals with disabilities and must make “reasonable modifications” to physical and online processes to accommodate people with disabilities.

What is ADA Compliance?

To comply with the ADA, organizations must design and develop accessible online spaces that remove barriers for people with various disabilities. The best way to do this is to follow the accessibility standards spelled out in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA. These guidelines are the internationally recognized standard for accessibility, establishing a framework for making web content more accessible.

Some of these guidelines include:

• Text and images have a minimum color contrast ratio of 4.5:1.
• Captions or audio descriptions are included for video content.
• Alt text is included for all images or non-text content.
• Headings follow a hierarchical order (e.g., H1, H2, H3).
• Digital content is compatible with assistive technologies, such as screen readers.
• Users can navigate through content using keyboard commands or shortcuts alone.

These are just some of the recommendations included in WCAG 2.1 that contribute to ADA compliance. For a more detailed list, view our ADA Compliance Checklist.

A Look into Rising ADA Lawsuits

As mentioned above, ADA lawsuits decreased last year, with 2,784 website accessibility lawsuits filed, according to Seyfarth Shaw. Digital accessibility made up roughly 34% of ADA Title III lawsuits in federal court (2,794 out of 8,227). Here’s a closer look at some of last year’s numbers:

• New York had the highest number of ADA lawsuits with 2,152. Florida followed at 385 and Pennsylvania taking the third spot with 143 cases.
• eCommerce has the highest number of ADA lawsuits with 29.9% of cases falling in this category; food service is the next highest with 22.9%.
• Most companies facing an ADA lawsuit have an annual revenue of under 25 million. 
• The majority of accessibility issues (99%) are experienced on desktops.

Most ADA lawsuits happen when individuals with disabilities encounter a barrier that prevents them from accessing or easily using digital content. For example, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a lawsuit against the State of Alaska Division of Elections for violating the ADA. The lawsuit alleged that the State of Alaska failed to provide accessible voting machines, or if they did, they did not work. 

One voter with a visual disability required assistance to vote using a paper ballot as no magnification device was available. Another voter with difficulty walking, moving, writing, and talking also struggled to complete paperwork. No assistance was provided by poll workers in this instance. 

The DOJ required the State to implement an accessible voting system at all federal, state, and local elections and provide accessible online voting information.

The above is just one example of an ADA lawsuit. Thousands of other businesses have been sued for lack of both physical and online accessibility — Vita Coffee, Sub-Zero Group, New Green Nutrition, Madame Tussauds Orlando, and Jomart Chocolates Corp are a few examples.

As the world becomes more digital, the legal risk surrounding organizations does as well. Businesses must ensure they’re compliant with ADA accessibility guidelines or face potential legal consequences, including expensive lawsuits and demand letters. By conducting regular accessibility audits, participating in training, and keeping accessibility in mind from the beginning, businesses are better positioned to meet ADA standards.

Ensure ADA Compliance with AudioEye

With 1.3 billion people worldwide having a disability, complying with the ADA is critical for today’s organizations. However, compliance with the ADA goes far beyond mitigating legal risk. It’s about ensuring that individuals with disabilities have equal access to digital environments and can use them easily. Not only does this benefit the disability community, but organizations can tap into a largely underserved but highly loyal customer base. This results in more revenue opportunities, higher SEO rankings, and  fostering an inclusive online environment,

To help you get started, there’s AudioEye. Through our hybrid accessibility testing approach, we help you find and find ADA violations that put your organization at risk for lawsuits. From our initial accessibility scan that finds common accessibility issues to our Expert Services run by our team of human testers and individuals with disabilities, AudioEye simplifies your path to ADA website compliance. We even offer comprehensive legal support if you’re currently facing an accessibility lawsuit. 

Ready to get started on your path to accessibility? Enter the URL of your digital content below. 

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