Plaintiff
- Name: PHILLIP SULLIVAN, JR.
- Filing date: July 15, 2019
- State of filing: New York
Defendant
- Name: SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. d/b/a SUBARU
- Website: www.subaru.com
- Industry: Automobile
- Summary: International car manufacturer
Case Summary
On July 15, 2019, PHILLIP SULLIVAN, JR. filed a Complaint in New York State court against SUBARU OF AMERICA, INC. d/b/a SUBARU . Plaintiff PHILLIP SULLIVAN, JR. alleges that www.subaru.com is not accessible per the WCAG 2.1, Section 508 accessibility standard(s).
Case Details
Plaintiff alleges issues in its Complaint including the following:
Plaintiff is legally deaf under the New York State Human Rights Law, and the New York City Human Rights Law. Plaintiff cannot access the audio portion of a video without the assistance of closed captioning. Plaintiff has been denied the full enjoyment of t he facilities, goods, and services of the Website, as a result of its accessibility barriers. Most recently in July 2019, Plaintiff attempted to watch the videos “2019 Subaru Forester Walkaround” and “DriverFocus” on the Website but could not comprehend the content of the videos due to their lack of closed captioning. The inaccessibility of the Website has deterred him from watching videos on the Website.
Plaintiff asserts the following cause(s) of action in its Complaint:
- Violation of New York State Human Rights Law, N.Y. Exec. Law, Article 15 (Executive Law § 292 et seq.)
- Violation of New York State Civil Rights Law, NY CLS Civ R, Article 4 (CLS Civ R § 40 et seq.)
- Violation of New York City Human Rights Law, N.Y.C. Administrative Code § 8-102, et seq.)
- Declaratory Relief
Plaintiff seeks the following relief by way of its Complaint:
- A preliminary and permanent injunction to prohibit Defendant from violating the N.Y. Exec. Law § 296, et seq., N.Y.C. Administrative 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 the Website fully functional and compliant with WCAG 2.1 A and AA Standards, so that the Website is readily accessible to and usable by deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals and other individuals with impairments, such as those who are visually impaired.
- A declaration that Defendant owns, maintains, and/or operates the Website in a manner which discriminates against the deaf and hard of hearing, and which fails to provide access for persons with disabilities as required by N.Y. Exec. Law § 296, et seq., N.Y.C. Administrative Code § 8-107, et seq., and the laws of New York;
- Compensatory damages in an amount to be determined by proof, including all applicable statutory damages and fines, to Plaintiff for violations of their civil rights under New York State Human Rights Law and City Law;
- Plaintiff’s reasonable attorneys’ fees, statutory damages, expenses, and costs of suit as provided by state law;
- For pre- and post-judgment interest to the extent permitted by law; and
- Such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.
