Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits discrimination “on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations of any place of public accommodation by any person who owns, leases (or leases to), or operates a place of public accommodation.” Courts of appeals have divided as to whether a “place of public accommodation” requires an actual physical space, or whether an internet only “place” can qualify.
Last week, a New York district court weighed in and, disagreeing with other district courts in the Second Circuit, held that “internet-only businesses” are not places of public accommodation, and thus that consumers of such businesses are not protected from disability discrimination under the ADA. The case, Mejia v. High Brew Coffee, was brought by Jose Mejia, who is blind and uses screen-reading software to navigate websites. He was unable to use this software when he attempted to purchase coffee on High Brew’s website, due to problems with the site’s coding.
Given the divide amongst district courts, an appeal seems likely.
