ADA Title III Compliance for Restaurant Websites and Apps

Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits places of public accommodation from discriminating against individuals with disabilities. By now, most restaurants have become familiar with Title III compliance when it comes to modifying facilities and procedures - enabling disabled patrons to have equal access to goods and services. Restaurants, however, may not have considered whether their websites are equally accessible under ADA Title III. Websites have no physical location, raising a common question: how can a website be considered a “place” of public accommodation subject to ADA Title III’s accessibility requirements. Recently, federal courts within the First, Second and Seventh Circuits have held that websites are “places” under ADA Title III and therefore should be accessible to disabled patrons. Therefore, websites within those jurisdictions must be ADA compliant even without a traditional brick and mortar establishment. These rulings are…