California's Unruh Act and website accessibility

What is the Unruh Act?

The Unruh Civil Rights Act is section 51 of the California Civil Code. It says everyone within California's jurisdiction is entitled to "full and equal accommodations, advantages, facilities, privileges, or services in all business establishments of every kind whatsoever", whatever their disability, race, religion or other listed characteristic.

The Act doesn't mention websites or name a technical standard. How it applies to websites comes from its link to the ADA and from court decisions.

How is the Unruh Act connected to the ADA?

Section 51(f) says a violation of a person's rights under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act "shall also constitute a violation of this section". So a claim about an inaccessible website can rest on the ADA and be brought under the Unruh Act.

What are the damages under the Unruh Act?

Section 52(a) sets the money a business can owe for each and every offense:

• Actual damages, plus any further amount set by a jury or a judge, up to three times the actual damages.
• In no case less than $4,000.
• Any attorney's fees the court decides.

Does the Unruh Act apply to online-only businesses?

In Martinez v. Cot'n Wash (August 2022), the California Court of Appeal looked at a retailer that sold only online. It held that a website like that is not a place of public accommodation under the ADA, because a place of public accommodation must be connected to a physical place. So the claim couldn't rest on an ADA violation.

Without an ADA violation, the person suing must show intentional discrimination. The court said that failing to fix a known problem isn't enough on its own to prove that.

That ruling was about an online-only retailer. Businesses whose websites are connected to a physical place open to the public may still face these claims, and this area of law keeps changing.

What should website owners do?

1. Aim for WCAG Level AA. The Unruh Act doesn't name it, but it is the usual reference for accessible websites.
2. Test your main tasks, such as buying or booking, with a keyboard and a screen reader.
3. Fix what you find in your site's code. Our checklist can help you start.
4. Give people an easy way to report a problem, and act on reports.

A visitor tool such as Accessonix helps people adjust a page for themselves. It doesn't fix your site's code, and it can't protect you from a legal claim. Our guide on what widgets can and can't do explains why.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Whether the Unruh Act applies to you depends on your business and the facts, so talk to a qualified lawyer about your situation.