Thomas J. Olsen v. Cassena Care, LLC

Summary

On February 26, 2019, Thomas J. Olsen filed a Complaint in New York Federal court against Cassena Care, LLC. Plaintiff Thomas J. Olsen alleges that www.uesrnc.com is not accessible per the WCAG 2.0 accessibility standard(s).

About the defendant

Cassena Care, LLC owns and operates Upper East Side Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, where they offer nursing, short and long-term rehabilitation.

What the complaint says

The problems the plaintiff describes with the website.

• Know what is on the Website. This is in part due to the non-text images lacking alt-text describing them. In fact, several images are not even detected by the screen reader. For example, there are no images detected under “Our Outstanding Team.” A sighted user is given two images. The text is also very difficult to understand using a screen reader. There are several unnatural breaks in words throughout the website. For example, under short-term rehabilitation, the screen reader breaks up the word incorporates into “incor” and “porates” and services is broken up as two words, “ser” and “vices.” This happens frequently throughout the Website, making the text completely incomprehensible.
• Navigate the Website. The screen reader had difficulty navigating the Website. Focus is not redirected when a main navigation link is selected. Under press releases, there are several links labeled only “see our story,” with no further explanation of where the link will lead.
• Contact the admissions team. Plaintiff Olsen is unable to contact the admissions team because the form is untagged.

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
• 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 Title III of the ADA, 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 the requirements set forth in Title III of 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 the Website in a manner that discriminates against the blind and which fails to provide access for persons with disabilities as required by ADA, 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 Subclasses 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 damages in an amount to be determined by proof, including all applicable statutory damages, punitive damages and fines;
• Pre- and post-judgment interest;
• Costs and expenses of this action together with reasonable attorneys’ and expert fees; and
• Such other and further relief as this Court deems just and proper.