WASHINGTON – The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has dismissed a lawsuit filed against Department of Labor FCU that alleged its website violated accessibility standards under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
The lawsuit is one of many that have been filed against credit unions over the issue of website accessibility by law firms that have been specializing in such litigation, often seeking settlements from CUs.
"This is an important decision for credit unions – it's the first dismissal at the appellate level, which is likely to set a heavier precedent than those we've already seen from lower court cases," said Carrie Hunt, NAFCU's executive vice president of government affairs and general counsel. "NAFCU will continue to support credit unions facing these meritless lawsuits and work with the Justice Department to get clear guidance on the issue."
“The court’s decision is a major step forward in our defense of credit unions facing predatory lawsuits exploiting a law designed to protect disabled Americans,” said CUNA President/CEO Jim Nussle. “While this is an encouraging victory in the court system, one that creates binding precedent throughout the Fourth Circuit, CUNA will continue its work in the legislative and regulatory arenas, as well as in other court cases, to ensure credit unions can continue to serve their members without threat of frivolous legal action due to uncertainty with the ADA."
As CUToday.info has previously reported, similar lawsuits filed against other CUs, such as DoverPhila FCU and Security CU, have also been dismissed by other courts. In all, eight such cases have been dismissed to date, according to NAFCU.
Both CUNA and NAFCU, along with state associations, have been filing amicus briefs in cases across the country. NAFCU, for instance, said it has filed 16 such briefs in seven different states in support of CUs. The trade associations have also been pressing Congress and the Justice Department to take action on clarifying the ADA law as it pertains to websites.