ADA Website Accessibility Lawsuit: a community cultural center and online retailer

Plaintiff Edery Herrera, represented by Gottlieb & Associates PLLC, filed a lawsuit in the Southern District of New York on January 29, 2026, against a community cultural center and online retailer, alleging that its digital platform is inaccessible to visually-impaired individuals. The complaint asserts violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III, New York State Human Rights Law, New York City Human Rights Law, and New York State General Business Law.

The complaint specifically cites multiple Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) violations, including a lack of alternative text for non-text elements, empty links without descriptive text, redundant links, linked images missing alt-text, pages with identical title elements, and broken links that fail to communicate their status to screen readers. Further issues include keyboard navigation barriers, content not being resizable, and inaccessible Portable Document Format (PDFs), all of which prevented the plaintiff from accessing product information and completing online purchases.

This legal action highlights the ongoing risk for businesses that fail to maintain accessible websites. Companies operating online platforms must ensure full compliance with ADA Title III and WCAG standards to avoid similar litigation and to provide equal access to all disabled consumers, thereby mitigating the risk of discriminatory practices and potential legal liabilities.