Equal Access in Cyberspace: On Bridging the Digital Divide in Public Accommodations Coverage Through Amendment to the Americans with Disabilities Act

Authors

Laura Wolk

Abstract

This Note will proceed in three Parts. Part I will trace the development of the case law on this issue, which has culminated in a circuit split. It will also discuss the influence of the Department of Justice (DOJ), which has not exercised its regulatory authority on the subject but which has initiated enforcement actions consistent with an interpretation that includes freestanding websites. Part II will argue, based on the text, congressional silence, and the statute’s dual principal purposes, that private commercial websites do not fall within the purview of Title III. Part III will propose that disability rights advocates should direct their energy not toward enforcing the statute as currently interpreted by the DOJ, but instead toward Congress to ensconce this important public policy through clear statutory amendments. Such amendments should govern websites and establish a framework for assessing and evaluating any technologies which might arise in the future.

Recommended Citation

Laura Wolk, Equal Access in Cyberspace: On Bridging the Digital Divide in Public Accommodations Coverage Through Amendment to the Americans with Disabilities Act, 91 Notre Dame L. Rev. 447 (2015).
Available at: https://scholarship.law.nd.edu/ndlr/vol91/iss1/10