Figueroa v. B Era Corporation

Summary

On April 4, 2019, Jose Figueroa filed a Complaint in New York Federal court against B Era Corporation. Plaintiff Jose Figueroa alleges that www.burnetieshoes.com is not accessible per the WCAG 2.1 accessibility standard(s).

About the defendant

B Era Corporation produces and sells men's and women's shoes under the brand name, Bernetie.

What the complaint says

The problems the plaintiff describes with the website.

• Plaintiff was unable to purchase the Burnetie Men’s Suede LeatherCarnaby Sneakers with his screen reading software, as he encountered multiple error messages such as “Sorry The Page You Requested Was Not Found” and/or “Error Code 404.”
• Website also requires the use of a mouse to create an account. Yet Plaintiff cannot use a mouse because manipulating the mouseis a visual activity of moving the mouse pointer from one visual spot on the page to another.
• Nor did it provide Plaintiff with the ability to skim content, as Plaintiff was forced to manually scroll, line by line, in an effort to browse content of interest located toward the bottom of a given page.
• Website did not provide a Chat feature to enable Plaintiff to requesthelp navigating the Website.

Legal claims

The laws the plaintiff says the defendant broke, called causes of action.

• Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. § 12181 et seq.
• New York State Human Rights Law
• New York City Human Rights Law
• New York State Civil Rights Law
• Declaratory Relief

What the plaintiff asks for

What the plaintiff wants the court to order.

• A preliminary and permanent injunction to prohibit Defendant from violating the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12182, et seq., N.Y. Exec. Law § 296, et seq., N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-107, et seq. and the laws of New York;
• A preliminary and permanent injunction requiring Defendant to take all the steps necessary to make its Website into full compliance with requirements set forth in the ADA and its implementing regulations, so that the Website is readily accessible to and usable by blind individuals;
• A declaration that Defendant owns, maintains and/or operates its Website in a manner that discriminates against the blind and which fails to provide access for persons with disabilities as required by Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12182, et seq., N.Y. Exec. Law § 296, et seq., N.Y.C. Admin. Code § 8-107, et seq. and the laws of New York
• An order certifying the Class and the State and City Sub-Classes under Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(a) & (b)(2) and/or (b)(3), appointing Plaintiff as Class Representative, and his attorneys as Class Counsel;
• Compensatory and damages in an amount to be determined by proof, including all applicable statutory and punitive damages and fines, to Plaintiff and the proposed class for violations of their civil rights under the New York State Human Rights Law and New York City Law;
• Pre- and post-judgment interest;
• An award of costs and expenses of this action together withreasonable attorneys’ and expert fees; and
• Such other and further relief as this Court deems just and proper.