Associations Now: Tips for Improving Your Digital Accessibility

In October, the Supreme Court declined to hear what had the potential to be a landmark case on digital accessibility. The justices let stand a ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that the Americans With Disabilities Act applies to websites and mobile apps operated by businesses with physical locations.

It’s one of a handful of federal court challenges involving the ADA in recent years, and even without a ruling that applies nationally, Domino’s Pizza LLC v. Robles offers helpful guidance for associations and other organizations.

Julia Judish, a Pillsbury Employment & Labor special counsel, said the ruling is binding for the nine Western states covered by the Ninth Circuit. That effectively makes it applicable to associations based anywhere that have website users in those states.

The plaintiff had sought a decision that required businesses to follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), a standard managed by the World Wide Web Consortium. Although the Ninth Circuit did not define specific legal requirements for website accessibility, legal settlements from the Justice Department generally include requirements to use WCAG 2.0, Judish said.

“Associations that maintain websites and apps that do not meet WCAG 2.0 standards therefore risk legal challenges,” she added.

Judish suggested that the Ninth Circuit decision could prove a strong standard for future digital accessibility cases. “Courts in other states may find the reasoning of the Ninth Circuit persuasive,” she said.

So, what are some of the things you need to consider if you’re building a website or app for accessibility?

Judish said accessibility is a “moving target” that will evolve with tech innovations and shifting public needs. “Associations also need to be flexible themselves in responding to concerns that an individual has difficulty accessing web content or an application due to a particular disability,” she said.