Exhaustion is required. A complaint must be filed with the Missouri Commission on Human Rights within 180 days, which is a jurisdictional condition (§ 213.075.1). After 180 days the complainant can request a right-to-sue letter, then sue within 90 days (and within 2 years) for actual and punitive damages, which are capped, plus fees (§ 213.111). The definition of 'places of public accommodation' is broad ('all places or businesses offering... to the general public'), but no court is known to have applied it to a website. On top of that, the federal ADA applies in Missouri 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 Missouri and everywhere else.
Lawsuits in Missouri
Our lawsuit tracker has indexed 1 federal court records from Missouri. It’s a sample, not a complete count: it covers dockets that say what they’re about.
- Dierbergs Markets, Inc. (opens in a new tab), filed 2025-10
Questions
Can a business in Missouri 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 Missouri law a person can sue the business directly. We found no court decision applying Missouri law to a website.
What is the minimum a Missouri court awards for a website accessibility violation?
Missouri law sets no fixed minimum per violation. Exhaustion is required. A complaint must be filed with the Missouri Commission on Human Rights within 180 days, which is a jurisdictional condition (§ 213.075.1). After 180 days the complainant can request a right-to-sue letter, then sue within 90 days (and within 2 years) for actual and punitive damages, which are capped, plus fees (§ 213.111). The definition of 'places of public accommodation' is broad ('all places or businesses offering... to the general public'), but no court is known to have applied it to a website.
Do I pay the plaintiff's lawyer if I lose or settle in Missouri?
Under the federal ADA, yes: a business that loses or settles usually pays the plaintiff's attorney's fees (42 U.S.C. § 12205). Missouri law also provides for attorney's fees.
Which accessibility standard should a Missouri 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.