Olsen v. Sea-ny.com Inc.

Summary

On November 29, 2019, Thomas J. Olsen filed a Complaint in New York Federal court against Sea-NY.com Inc.. Plaintiff Thomas J. Olsen alleges that www.sea-ny.com is not accessible per the WCAG 2.0 accessibility standard(s).

About the defendant

Sea-NY.com Inc. manufactures and sells women's apparel under the brand name, Sea.

What the complaint says

The problems the plaintiff describes with the website.

• Lack of alt-text for images.
• Button elements are empty and have no programmaticallydetermined name.
• Frames do not have a title.
• Webpages have duplicate IDs which cause problems in screenreaders.
• Form field labels are not unique on a page, or enclosed in a fieldestwith a legend that makes the label unique.
• Approximately eight (8) headings are empty.
• Several links on a page share the same link text but go to adifferent destination.
• Webpages have markup errors

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 Defendantfrom 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 totake 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 theWebsite 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;
• An award of 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.