Small business owners across Missouri are dealing with a new kind of legal problem and it's not something most of them know they need to worry about: their websites. Lawsuits have been popping up saying their websites aren't accessible enough to people with disabilities.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a law meant to ensure people with disabilities can access services and information. But lately, several lawsuits have been filed that are not genuinely trying to improve accessibility, but are more like money grabs by predatory lawyers.
Last week, I presented a bill to the General Laws Committee to protect Missouri businesses from this "sue & settle" tactic.
What's Really Happening
You may have heard or seen in the news that small businesses are receiving demand letters telling them their websites aren't ADA-compliant - and a lawsuit will follow if they don't pay or fix it quickly.
National reporting shows:
- These lawsuits are growing. In the first half of 2025, more than 2,000 were filed.
- Many of the lawsuits come from the same handful of plaintiffs and law firms filing identical claims against several businesses.
- Some Missouri small business owners have shared how they received letters demanding a change with a short deadline and threats of tens of thousands of dollars in legal costs.
What My Bill Would Do
In a nutshell, my bill will protect honest business owners from attorneys who want to rush to court without giving them an opportunity to fix the problem.
1. Require Notice & Time to Make Changes
Before being sued, business owners would receive a notice stating their website isn't compliant. Then that business would have 90 days to take steps toward making the necessary change.
2. Discourage Abusive Lawsuits
The bill requires the courts to look at whether the lawsuit was filed mainly to get a quick settlement. If a judge finds it was abusive, the business could recover costs - including attorney fees - from the plaintiff.
3. Protect Legitimate Accessibility Claims
The goal isn't to block people with real accessibility needs - it's to stop predatory schemes that don't give businesses a reasonable opportunity to comply.
Why This Matters
Many small business owners are not aware that they are breaking a law if their website is not ADA compliant.
They should not be targeted and forced out of thousands of dollars simply because of technical issues they were not aware of. These types of unexpected expenses could be devastating for Missouri's small businesses.
We need to protect them from predatory attorneys and give them time to fix the problem when it comes to light.
A Team Effort
Fortunately, I'm not alone in my concern for this issue. Senator Brad Hudson has filed a similar bill, SB 907. Senator Hudson and I will be combining our bills before they are voted out of committee, which I hope to see happen very soon.
Representative Mazzie Christensen has also filed an identical bill along with a handful of other representatives. That bill has now passed the House and has been sent to the Senate. I've been working with Rep. Christensen and will be handling that bill here in the senate.
We have seen full support from both sides of the aisle on both our bills and I'm hopeful that at least one of them will make it across the finish line and into our statutes this year. You can track them using the links below.
Helpful Resources
Accessible websites are good for business and our community. If you have a website and want to make sure it's compliant, these resources are a good place to start:
- ADA Guidance - Website Accessibility Guidance
- WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools
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