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As credit unions across the country continue to be the target of plaintiffs' attorneys' lawsuits challenging website compliance under the Americans with Disability Act (ADA), NAFCU is offering resources to help.

NAFCU is active on this issue, given the compliance challenges and increase in litigation risk. In an email yesterday, NAFCU Executive Vice President of Government Affairs and General Counsel Carrie Hunt shared the steps some credit unions facing litigation have taken, including:

• consulting with attorneys and insurers;
• placing websites under maintenance while seeking legal advice; and
• exploring costs of updating websites to meet accessibility standards.

Because each credit union's circumstances and litigation risk are unique, NAFCU is not recommending a specific course of action should a credit union be named in a lawsuit.

The association is monitoring the Department of Justice's approach to the ADA – NAFCU commented on its rulemaking efforts related to "public accommodations" last year – but the issue is not currently on the DOJ's formal regulatory agenda.

On the legislative front, a NAFCU-supported bill – the ADA Education and Reform Act of 2017 (H.R. 620) – cleared the House Judiciary Committee last month. The bill would set conditions for filing civil actions over the failure to remove an architectural barrier to an existing public place, among other things. NAFCU is actively working to expand the bill's protections to also cover website lawsuits. The association also sent a letter to the committee last week urging members to support additional legislation to clarify website access requirements under the ADA in order to curb frivolous lawsuits.

NAFCU Vice President of Regulatory Compliance Brandy Bruyere covered the issue in the association's compliance publication earlier this year to try to help member credit unions identify the risk and make business decisions on the issue. The article is now available on NAFCU's website to both members and nonmembers.