Sutherland and the Washington Lawyers’ Committee Reach Landmark Settlement with General Services Administration

WASHINGTON (Nov. 10, 2015) – Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP, in conjunction with the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, has reached a settlement with the General Services Administration (GSA) on behalf of three blind federal contractors and the American Council of the Blind (ACB). The settlement will benefit all blind federal contractors.
 
The settlement requires GSA to make significant changes to SAM.gov that had prevented blind federal contractors from accessing the web site and maintaining their status as federal contractors.  The accessibility issues were identified by the plaintiffs and confirmed by a web accessibility expert.  Following GSA’s implementation of the agreed-to changes, the web site will undergo review by another independent accessibility expert. In addition, the agreement creates a process by which members of the blind community will test and provide feedback on future changes to SAM.gov.
 
According to Sutherland partner and co-chair of the Washington Lawyers’ Committee, Lewis S. Wiener, “This is an excellent result not only for our clients, but for the blind community as a whole. The Internet is part of our daily lives, and being unable to access any web site — much less a web site that is essential to doing business with the federal government — puts members of the blind community at an economic disadvantage. It is unfortunate that it took the filing of a lawsuit to bring about meaningful change, but we thank GSA for working collaboratively with us and our clients to make SAM.gov accessible.”   
 
“We are very pleased with this settlement,” said Matthew Handley, Director of Litigation for the Washington Lawyers’ Committee. “It ensures that blind contractors have equal access to a web site that is essential to their livelihoods, and that the web site will remain accessible in the future. Everyone, including the blind community, deserves access to the Internet, which has become a means for independence, information and commerce.”
 
Kim Charlson, president of the ACB, stated, “On behalf of the American Council of the Blind (ACB), I want to acknowledge the excellent support received from Sutherland and the Washington Lawyers’ Committee in arriving at this landmark settlement. I am very pleased that GSA is being held accountable for making SAM.gov accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired. As a result of this settlement, it is my expectation that our community will not encounter access barriers with other GSA sites in the future.”
 
In April 2014, Sutherland and the Washington Lawyers’ Committee filed a putative class action in federal district court in the District of Columbia against GSA, the federal agency responsible for administering the federal government’s non-defense contracts, alleging that GSA failed to provide a web site that was accessible to blind federal contractors, who, like almost all federal contractors, must register and annually renew their federal contractor registration on SAM.gov.
 
The complaint, filed on behalf of three federal contractors and the ACB, alleged that SAM.gov was incompatible with most screen-reading software that many blind individuals, including the plaintiffs in this case, rely on to navigate the Internet. As a result, the plaintiffs alleged that GSA discriminated against blind federal contractors, who could not register or renew their registration on SAM.gov, which they are required to do under federal law.
 
Sutherland became involved in the case through the Washington Lawyers’ Committee, which helped two of the individual plaintiffs file administrative complaints against GSA to no avail.
 
In addition to Mr. Wiener, the plaintiffs were represented by Sutherland associate Charles M. Kruly and former Sutherland associate Amanda R. Callais.
 
Sutherland has a long and distinguished history of commitment to pro bono work, tracing back nearly 100 years to the firm’s founders.