Leverne Walker v. Pacific Sunwear of California, LLC

Summary

According to the complaint, Leverne Walker, a legally blind individual, is suing Pacific Sunwear of California, LLC for violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act due to the inaccessibility of its ecommerce website, www.pacsun.com. Walker alleges that he encountered numerous barriers while attempting to access product information, including missing alternative text and broken ARIA references, which prevented him from independently evaluating and purchasing clothing items. He seeks a permanent injunction requiring the defendant to make its website accessible and claims that the failure to do so denies him and others equal access to the goods and services offered online. The complaint also includes class action allegations on behalf of all legally blind individuals who have faced similar issues.

About the defendant

Operates a nationwide retail ecommerce platform for clothing, swimwear, accessories, and related products.

What the complaint says

The problems the plaintiff describes with the website.

• Defendant's website is inaccessible to blind individuals due to multiple accessibility barriers.
• Plaintiff was unable to independently evaluate products due to missing alternative text and broken ARIA references.
• Defendant failed to comply with WCAG 2.1 accessibility standards.

Legal claims

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

• Violations of the ADA, 42 U.S.C. § 12182 et seq.
• New York State Human Rights Law
• Violation of New York State Civil Rights Law
• Violations of the New York City Human Rights Law
• Declaratory Relief

What the plaintiff asks for

What the plaintiff wants the court to order.

• A preliminary and permanent injunction prohibiting Defendant from violating Title III of the ADA.
• A preliminary and permanent injunction requiring Defendant to make www.pacsun.com fully accessible to blind and visually impaired individuals.
• A declaration that Defendant discriminates against blind individuals by failing to provide equal access as required by law.
• An order certifying the proposed Class and New York Subclass under Fed. R. Civ. P. 23.
• An award of costs, litigation expenses, and reasonable attorneys' fees.

Proposed class

The group of people the plaintiff asks to represent, so the case can cover them too.

All legally blind individuals in the United States who have attempted to access www.pacsun.com and, as a result of Defendant's failure to design, construct, maintain, and operate the Website in an accessible manner, were denied equal access to the goods, services, and information offered thereon.