“You know, small business owners like me want to do the right thing, but we’re being dragged into courts by lawyers who profit off of technicalities,” Fetterman said. “That’s not justice. That’s a shakedown.”

FACE EVEN LONGER JAIL TIME. WELL, TONIGHT WE ARE GETTING ANSWERS AS MORE AND MORE SMALL BUSINESSES IN MISSOURI FACE LAWSUITS ALL BROUGHT BY THE SAME LAWYER. ALL A PLAINTIFF LAWYER NEEDS TO DO IS RUN AN AUTOMATED TEST, FIND SOME ERRORS ON YOUR WEBSITE, PUT THAT IN A COMPLAINT WITH A LOT OF BOILERPLATE ALLEGATIONS, AND THEN NOW YOU HAVE A LAWSUIT. WE FIRST TOLD YOU ABOUT THOSE EXPENSIVE LAWSUITS BACK IN MAY. BUSINESSES ARE BEING TOLD THEIR WEBSITE ARE NOT IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT. BUSINESS OWNERS TELL US IT’S JUST FOR A SHAKEDOWN FOR MORE MONEY. AND AS KMBC KRISTA TATSCHL FOUND OUT, THEY’RE NOW ASKING FOR HELP FROM LAWMAKERS IN JEFFERSON CITY. ON THE KANSAS SIDE, THERE ARE LAWS IN PLACE TO PROTECT SMALL BUSINESSES FROM THIS TYPE OF SUE AND SETTLED LITIGATION. BUT JUST ACROSS STATE LINE FROM MISSOURI SMALL BUSINESSES, THERE’S NO SUCH PROTECTION. WELCOME IN. WE DO SANDWICHES, WE DO FILLINGS, REUBENS. WE OFFER REALLY FUN AND ENVIRONMENT FOR EVERYBODY. NOT ON THE MENU AT FETTERMAN’S DELI. I GET HIT WITH THIS DEMAND LETTER. A LETTER FROM KECHI ATTORNEY, KEVIN PUCKETT. IT STATES FETTERMAN’S WEBSITE IS NON-COMPLIANT WITH THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT AND HIS CLIENT, WHO IS BLIND, CAN’T ACCESS CERTAIN FEATURES. PUCKETT SAYS HIS CLIENT, AS A RESULT, HAS ALREADY SUFFERED HARM. FETTERMAN HAS 14 DAYS TO FIX IT AND SETTLE OUT OF COURT. HE SAYS ANY WAY YOU SLICE IT, IT’S A MONEY GRAB. THE SETTLEMENTS ARE RANGING ANYWHERE FROM 5000 TO $40,000. HIRING A LAWYER IS GOING TO PROBABLY COST ME, YOU KNOW, CLOSE TO HALF OF THAT TO FIGHT THAT. I’VE CONTACTED LEGISLATORS. I’M LOOKING TO, YOU KNOW, GET PASS A LAW SIMILAR TO WHAT KANSAS HAS A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO TO STOP THESE PREDATORY ADA COMPLIANCE. AND I’M HERE TODAY TO LET OTHER BUSINESSES KNOW THAT YOU’RE NOT ALONE, THAT HE IS DOING THIS ACROSS THE STATE OF MISSOURI. PUCKETT HAS FILED THIS TYPE OF SUIT 90 TIMES IN MISSOURI ON BEHALF OF THE SAME CLIENT. I ASKED PUCKETT TODAY BY EMAIL TO PUT KMBC IN TOUCH WITH HIS CLIENT, BUT I HAVEN’T RECEIVED A RESPONSE. YOU KNOW, SMALL BUSINESSES LIKE MINE WANT TO DO THE RIGHT THING, BUT WE’RE BEING DRAGGED INTO THE COURTS BY LAWYERS WHO ARE PROFITING OFF OF TECHNICALITIES, NOT HELPING REAL PEOPLE. THAT’S NOT JUSTICE. THAT’S A SHAKEDOWN. KRISTA TATSCHL KMBC NINE NEWS. MORE THAN 3800 SUE AND SETTLE CASES WERE RECORDED LAST YEAR.

Advertisement More ‘sue-and-settle’ lawsuits over alleged website ADA noncompliance hit Missouri small business owners “You know, small business owners like me want to do the right thing, but we’re being dragged into courts by lawyers who profit off of technicalities,” Fetterman said. “That’s not justice. That’s a shakedown.”

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“Within two weeks of opening this location, I get hit with this demand letter.” Standing before a colorful “Chip Wall” and among clean tables awaiting the lunch rush, Fetterman’s Deli owner Scott Fetterman said his stomach dropped upon reading a letter sent last week from Kansas City attorney Kevin Puckett. The letter states: “Notice of Non-compliance in Violation of the ADA Website Accessibility Lawsuit — Myers vs. Fetterman’s Deli LLC.” “This is crazy … our building is ADA compliant, and I had no idea there were these rules about our website,” Fetterman said. “We have an Accessibility Statement there.” Puckett, on behalf of client Robert Glen Myers of Hamilton, Missouri, has filed 90 suits since 2024 alleging small business websites across the state can’t be efficiently accessed by Myers who, court documents state, is legally blind. “You know, small business owners like me want to do the right thing, but we’re being dragged into courts by lawyers who profit off of technicalities,” Fetterman said. “That’s not justice. That’s a shakedown.” KMBC first reported in May a rash of similar cases being filed, and at that time, Puckett released a statement saying those businesses being sued “… operate websites that contain significant barriers for blind users relying on screen reader technology. These barriers prevent meaningful access to goods and services and, in some cases, entirely exclude our clients from online interactions. These are not theoretical harms—they are concrete, repeated, and well-documented via our clients and experts.” Court records state Myers, due to website inefficiencies, couldn’t access or research products on the defendants’ websites. ADA website compliance expert Nayan Padrai of Ecomback said website compliance is important to help those with disabilities, but the ADA was never intended to be a monetary pursuit. He said this “sue-and-settle” tactic is being used across the country and generating thousands of dollars to law firms. In the United States in 2024, the number of web compliance lawsuits in New York rose to 1,600; in Florida, 629; in California, 485; in Pennsylvania, 121; and 353 from other states including Missouri. “All a plaintiff lawyer needs to do is run automated tests, find some errors on your website, file a complaint with some boilerplate allegations, now you have a lawsuit you can defend and fight, but that’s going to cost you money,” Padrai said. Legislation in Kansas protecting small business owners from “sue-and-settle” tactics was passed in May 2023 as “The Act Against Abusive Website Access Litigation.” The act allows Kansas business owners accused of being ADA noncompliant with a website the opportunity to countersue the attorney and plaintiff(s) bringing the complaint. No such legislation has been passed in Missouri. Fetterman’s said a court fight or settlement could cost his business between $5,000 and $40,000. He said he would happily fix any issues blocking any customer from having a positive online experience, but he said lawyers are abusing ADA compliance requirements for profit. “I’ve contacted legislators and I want other small business owners to contact me. I’ll tell them, ‘You are not alone.’ … (Puckett) is doing this across the state of Missouri,” Fetterman said.Fetterman said Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has been contacted and is aware of small business owners’ concerns. For businesses seeking to become web compliant, resources to help can be found through Ecomback’s website here.