CRUZ v. ANTHONY BRANDS HOLDINGS, INC.

    Plaintiff

    • Name: Shael Cruz
    • Filing date: June 10, 2020
    • State of filing: New York

    Defendant

    • Name: Anthony Brands Holdings, Inc.
    • Website: www.anthony.com
    • Industry: Beauty
    • Summary: Anthony manufactures and sells face, shave, and body products

    Case Summary

    On June 10, 2020, Shael Cruz filed a Complaint in New York Federal court against Anthony Brands Holdings, Inc.. Plaintiff Shael Cruz alleges that www.anthony.com is not accessible per the WCAG 2.1 accessibility standard(s).

    Case Details

    Plaintiff alleges issues in its Complaint including the following:

    • For example, many features on the Website lacks alt. text, which is the invisible code embedded beneath a graphical image. As a result, Plaintiff was unable to differentiate what products were on the screen due to the failure of the Website to adequately describe its content.
    • Many features on the Website also fail to contain a proper label element or title attribute for each field. This is a problem for the visually impaired because the screen reader fails to communicate the purpose of the page element. It also leads to the user not being able to understand what he or she is expected to insert into the subject field. As a result, Plaintiff was unable to enjoy the privileges and benefits of the Website equally to sighted users.
    • Many pages on the Website also contain the same title elements. This was a problem for Plaintiff because in certain instances the screen reader failed to distinguish one page from another. In order to fix this problem, Defendant must change the title elements for each page. 
    • The Website also contains a host of broken links, which is a hyperlink to a nonexistent or empty webpage. For the visually impaired this is especially paralyzing due to the inability to navigate or otherwise determine where one is on the website once a broken link is encountered. For example, upon coming across a link of interest, Plaintiff was redirected to an error page. However, the screen-reader failed to communicate that the link was broken. As a result, Plaintiff could not get back to his original search.
    • The website, in the upper left-hand corner provides for a clickable menu in the form of an image. The image lacks any description for the text or alternate text except for “hamburger.png”. This description appears to be a unique name for the image file but does not describe the contents nor the image itself. Given that the Defendant sells skin products, the description seems more out of place and a screen reader interpreting this description would most definitely confuse a visually impaired user as to where they are and what they are trying to review and/or buy.
    • When using a keyboard for site navigation the menu referenced in 8(a) will not open and provides a pop-up response that states “You are currently on an unlabeled image. To click this link, press ControlOption-Space.” When the user actually presses the “control” “option” “space” keys, the link does not open. c. The search button integrated to this website is not properly labeled and as such cannot be interpreted by the screen reader.

    Plaintiff asserts the following cause(s) of action in its Complaint:

    • Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. § 12181 et seq. 
    • New York City Human Rights Law
    • Declaratory Relief

    Plaintiff seeks the following relief by way of its Complaint:

    • A preliminary and permanent injunction to prohibit Defendant from violating the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12182, 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 its Website into full compliance with the requirements set forth in 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 its Website in a manner that discriminates against the blind and which fails to provide access for persons with disabilities as required by Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12182, et seq., N.Y.C. Administrative Code § 8-107, et seq., and the laws of New York
    • An order certifying the Class and Sub-Classes 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 and punitive damages and fines, to Plaintiff and the proposed class and subclasses for violations of their civil rights under New York City Human Rights Law and City Law;
    • 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.

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