The Application of Title III of the ADA to Sport Web Sites

• Published in: Journal of legal aspects of sport 2004-08, Vol.14 (2), p.145-161
• Main Authors: Grady, John, Ohlin, Jane Boyd
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1072-0316; 2325-2162
• DOI: 10.1123/jlas.14.2.145

This paper will explore the application of the Americans with Disabilities Act to Internet web sites, with emphasis on the implications of recent court decisions on the sport industry. Court decisions adopting both the broad and narrow interpretations of "public accommodation" will be analyzed along with recent interpretations to assess the current state of the law regarding Web accessibility. Given that the disability community makes up nearly one-fifth of the American population with over $220 billion in collective spending power (National Organization on Disability, 2002), from a marketing and finance perspective, a sport property's decision to make a web site accessible has the potential to be a financially lucrative means to attract a largely untapped market. However, from a legal standpoint, while the issue of whether a sport organization is required to design their web site in an accessible format in order to comply with the ADA is still being debated among the circuits, a sport property's failure to make its web site accessible could result in potential liability for violation of the ADA as future courts interpret Title III (42 U.S.C. 12182).