Alabama has no general state public-accommodation law. Its 'white cane'-type statute says individuals with disabilities are entitled to full and equal accommodations (§ 21-7-3), mainly in a service-animal context, and no express civil damages remedy was found. A website owner's real exposure in Alabama is the federal ADA. On top of that, the federal ADA applies in Alabama as everywhere: a business that loses or settles a website accessibility suit pays the plaintiff’s attorney’s fees.
The law
The federal baseline
ADA Title III gives a private plaintiff no money damages, but a business that loses or settles pays the plaintiff’s attorney’s fees (42 U.S.C. § 12205 (opens in a new tab)). That fee-shifting is what makes a website claim expensive, in Alabama and everywhere else.
Lawsuits in Alabama
The lawsuit tracker has no indexed court records from Alabama yet.
Questions
Can a business in Alabama be sued over an inaccessible website?
Yes. The federal ADA applies in every state, and a plaintiff can sue in federal court for an order to fix the site plus attorney's fees. Whether Alabama law lets a person sue a business directly for money is unconfirmed in the statute text we read. We found no court decision applying Alabama law to a website.
What is the minimum a Alabama court awards for a website accessibility violation?
Alabama law sets no fixed minimum per violation. Alabama has no general state public-accommodation law. Its 'white cane'-type statute says individuals with disabilities are entitled to full and equal accommodations (§ 21-7-3), mainly in a service-animal context, and no express civil damages remedy was found. A website owner's real exposure in Alabama is the federal ADA.
Do I pay the plaintiff's lawyer if I lose or settle in Alabama?
Under the federal ADA, yes: a business that loses or settles usually pays the plaintiff's attorney's fees (42 U.S.C. § 12205). Whether Alabama law adds its own fee award is unconfirmed.
Which accessibility standard should a Alabama business website meet?
The ADA doesn't name a technical standard for businesses. The Justice Department's 2022 guidance points to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), and its 2024 rule for state and local governments adopted WCAG 2.1 Level AA.