Web Page and the Americans with Disabilities Act

[David E. Ross]

So far, there has been no authoritative determination whether the ADA
applies to commercial Web sites. This is about to change.

A class-action lawsuit against the Target Corp has been certified in
federal court. The suit claims that Target violates the ADA because
audio browsers used by the blind cannot work with all the Web pages.
Since purchases may be made on-line through Target's Web site, the
plaintiffs claim this is a violation of the ADA.

Of course, Target will appeal the certification. Whether that appeal
succeeds or the lawsuit goes to trial, an end result will be an explicit
determination of whether the ADA applies not only to commercial Web
sites but also to the Web sites of state and local governments (which
are also subject to the ADA). This determination might also apply to
Web sites for charities and other non-profit organizations.

For a news article in the Los Angeles Times, see
<http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-blind4oct04,1,2839895.story>
"Suit may spur greater Web access for blind" (may require free
registration and login). See also
<http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071003/us_nm/target_blind_dc_6>.

--
David E. Ross
<http://www.rossde.com/>

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