In July 2014, DRA filed a lawsuit on behalf of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) and Heidi Viens, challenging Scribd, Inc.’s failure to design its digital reading subscription service to work with software used by the blind. Available on desktop and mobile devices, Scribd’s service provides users access to a large library of … Continue reading “National Federation of the Blind, et al. v. Scribd, Inc.”
In 2010, DRA, United Spinal Association and Disabled in Action filed a lawsuit on behalf of all New Yorkers of voting age with mobility and vision disabilities, who face access barriers attempting to vote privately and independently at their designated polling sites in New York City year after year. After more than four years of … Continue reading “United Spinal Association, et al. v. Board of Elections (BOE)”
Disability Rights Advocates and the American Civil Liberties Union sued the New York State Board of Elections and Department of Motor Vehicles over online voter registration that is inaccessible to people with disabilities on June 9, 2016. As a result of a settlement reached on February 25, 2019, the BOE and DMV have agreed to … Continue reading “Eason, et al. v. New York State Board of Elections (NYS BOE), et al.”
In April 2017, DRA and Legal Aid at Work filed a lawsuit against San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART), alleging that it discriminates against people with mobility disabilities and effectively excludes them from the regional mass transit system. For people with disabilities, problems that may be familiar annoyances to other riders can create … Continue reading “Senior and Disability Action v. San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)”
In 2016, DRA reached a first-of-its-kind agreement with Netflix to make accessible for blind people the movies and videos offered through the Netflix video streaming and DVD rental subscriptions. Under the agreement, Netflix will provide a new technology called “audio description” for many popular titles in its streaming and disc rental libraries. Audio description technology … Continue reading “Netflix Settlement”
Beginning in November 2017, Disability Rights Advocates and the Disability Law Center, Inc.represented the American Council of the Blind,Bay State Council of the Blind, and two individuals in litigation against Hulu, LLC to address the video streaming company’s failure to provide audio description and failure to maintain a website and applications that are accessible via … Continue reading “ACB v. Hulu LLC”
AMC has agreed to improve audio description service in its theaters nationwide, after several blind individuals, the California Council of the Blind, and the LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired (LightHouse) brought a case against the theater chain. Audio description technology enables people who are blind or low-vision to participate in and enjoy the … Continue reading “Audio Description in AMC Theaters”
Do you have a disability? Do you face barriers at hospitals or clinics? Exam rooms too small? Waiting rooms are too crowded with furniture? Exam tables too high? Examined while still in your wheelchair? MRI machines and mammograms inaccessible? No accessible weight scales? No ASL interpreters? No information in Braille or large print? Staff does … Continue reading “Access to Health Care in New York City”
In September 2016, Disability Rights Advocates announced a settlement of its federal class-action lawsuit on behalf of Bronx Independent Living Services (“BILS”) and three individuals with disabilities in the Bronx, alleging that the Union Community Health Center (“UCHC”) and St. Barnabas Hospital discriminate against patients with disabilities. Specifically, the suit had alleged that the UCHC … Continue reading “Bronx Independent Living Services (BILS), et al. v. Union Community Health Center (UCHC), et al.”
In October 2017, Disability Rights Advocates and Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP, on behalf of United Spinal Association, Inc. and four individuals with mobility, vision, and hearing disabilities, settled a federal class action lawsuit against Beth Israel Medical Center, St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, and Continuum Health Partners. The hospitals are … Continue reading “United Spinal Association et al. v. Beth Israel Medical Center et al.”