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Website accessibility law in West Virginia

Last checked

West Virginia bans disability discrimination by any business open to the public and lets a customer sue for damages and attorney's fees, but there is no fixed per-violation amount and no case applying it to websites. On top of that, the federal ADA applies in West Virginia as everywhere: a business that loses or settles a website accessibility suit pays the plaintiff’s attorney’s fees.

The law

Minimum per violation
None set
Can a person sue for money?
Yes
Attorney's fees under state law
Yes
Other money remedies
  • any legal or equitable relief the court deems appropriate, § 16B-17-13(c)
  • criminal fine $100–$500 and/or up to 30 days for willfully violating a final Commission order or obstructing the Commission, § 16B-17-14 (not a penalty for the discrimination itself)
Civil penalty
up to $5,000 per violation in an AG action, § 16B-17-20(c) — but only for interference by actual or threatened force, violence or property damage, so not relevant to website inaccessibility
Websites
We found no court decision applying West Virginia law to a website.

Verified against the official statute text, 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 West Virginia and everywhere else.

Lawsuits in West Virginia

The lawsuit tracker has no indexed court records from West Virginia yet.

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Questions

Can a business in West Virginia 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 West Virginia law a person can sue the business directly. We found no court decision applying West Virginia law to a website.

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

West Virginia law sets no fixed minimum per violation. West Virginia bans disability discrimination by any business open to the public and lets a customer sue for damages and attorney's fees, but there is no fixed per-violation amount and no case applying it to websites.

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

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

Which accessibility standard should a West Virginia 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.