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Website accessibility law in California

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California lets a disabled visitor sue directly for at least $4,000 per offense (Unruh) or $1,000 (Disabled Persons Act, pick one), plus attorney's fees; it is the highest-exposure state, though online-only businesses have a strong defense after Martinez v. Cot'n Wash. On top of that, the federal ADA applies in California as everywhere: a business that loses or settles a website accessibility suit pays the plaintiff’s attorney’s fees.

The law

Minimum per violation
$4,000
Can a person sue for money?
Yes
Attorney's fees under state law
Yes
Other money remedies
  • actual damages plus up to 3x actual damages, § 52(a)
  • Disabled Persons Act alternative: actual damages up to 3x, but no less than $1,000 per offense, § 54.3(a); a plaintiff cannot recover under both § 54.3 and § 52 for the same act, § 54.3(c)
  • Unruh § 51(f): any ADA violation is also an Unruh violation
Websites
Courts have applied California law to a website: Thurston v. Omni Hotels Mgmt. Corp. (2021) 69 Cal.App.5th 299 (website Unruh claim tried to a jury); but Martinez v. Cot'n Wash, Inc. (2022) 81 Cal.App.5th 1026 held a website-only business is not an ADA public accommodation and no intentional discrimination was alleged, so the claim failed.

Partially verified: read from a secondary copy of the statute because the official site couldn't be reached, Oct 7, 2026. A summary, not legal advice.

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). That fee-shifting is what makes a website claim expensive, in California and everywhere else.

Lawsuits in California

4 federal website accessibility lawsuits were filed in California in 2025 (Seyfarth Shaw, ADA Title III blog).

Our lawsuit tracker has indexed 2 federal court records from California. It’s a sample, not a complete count: it covers dockets that say what they’re about.

Compare every state

Questions

Can a business in California 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. Under California law a person can sue the business directly. Courts have applied California law to a website: Thurston v. Omni Hotels Mgmt. Corp. (2021) 69 Cal.App.5th 299 (website Unruh claim tried to a jury); but Martinez v. Cot'n Wash, Inc. (2022) 81 Cal.App.5th 1026 held a website-only business is not an ADA public accommodation and no intentional discrimination was alleged, so the claim failed.

What is the minimum a California court awards for a website accessibility violation?

$4,000 per violation under Unruh Civil Rights Act, Cal. Civ. Code §§ 51–52, before attorney's fees.

Do I pay the plaintiff's lawyer if I lose or settle in California?

Under the federal ADA, yes: a business that loses or settles usually pays the plaintiff's attorney's fees (42 U.S.C. § 12205). California law also provides for attorney's fees.

Which accessibility standard should a California 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.

How many website accessibility lawsuits were filed in California in 2025?

4 federal website accessibility lawsuits were filed in California in 2025, according to Seyfarth Shaw's count of federal filings.