The Overlay Trap in U.S. Website Accessibility Litigation

Ashley S. Jenkins, Associate | Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Ashley S. Jenkins is an Associate in Seyfarth’s Washington, D.C. office and a member of the firm’s ADA Title III & Public Access team, where her practice focuses on advising and defending clients facing accessibility-related challenges under federal, state, and local nondiscrimination laws. She regularly represents businesses in litigation involving both physical and digital accessibility matters, as well as in federal and state government investigations, including matters brought by the United States Department of Justice. Her experience includes defending retailers, hotels, restaurants, technology companies, institutions of higher education, health care providers, housing providers, and public entities in single-plaintiff and class action litigation arising under Title III of the ADA and parallel state statutes.

• Education & Credentials

Ashley earned her J.D. from the University of Buffalo School of Law and her B.S. from Gannon University, where she received the Academic Excellence Award, the Business Excellence Award, and participated in the University Honors Program. She is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia.

• Recognition & Leadership

Ashley is a member of Seyfarth’s National ADA Title III Specialty Practice Team, where her entire practice is devoted to assisting clients defending Title III lawsuits and federal investigations.

• Professional Involvement

Ashley counsels clients on proactive accessibility compliance strategies, including the development of ADA compliance programs, accessibility policies, and training initiatives designed to minimize legal risk and strengthen operational practices. She also advises housing providers on compliance with the Fair Housing Act and regularly assists clients responding to government investigations and enforcement actions. She has co-authored Seyfarth’s ADA Title III News & Insights blog on topics including federal website accessibility, kiosk class actions, and stadium seating modifications, and has presented at the CSUN Assistive Technology Conference on “Digital Accessibility Law: A Legal Update and Hot Topics” (March 2025).

• Experience

Prior to joining Seyfarth, Ashley served in the Disability Rights Section of the U.S. Department of Justice, where she enforced the same laws she now helps clients navigate, providing her with a unique perspective on compliance and enforcement matters. She also assisted in the Deepwater Horizon multidistrict litigation while working in the Civil Division of the Department of Justice.

Ken Nakata, Principal | Converge Accessibility

Ken Nakata is a Principal at Converge Accessibility, where he combines legal and technical perspectives on digital accessibility for a commonsense approach to compliance and lower risk. He is a former Senior Trial Attorney with the U.S. Justice Department’s Disability Rights Section, where he developed nationwide ADA policies for the internet, served as lead counsel for the interagency working group making the federal government’s information technology accessible to people with disabilities under Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, and represented the United States many times in litigation in federal courts.

• Education & Credentials

Ken is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and received his undergraduate degree in mathematics from Johns Hopkins University. He is admitted to the Bars of New York, Washington, and the District of Columbia. He is certified as a Privacy Professional with the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Principles (CPACP) with the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP), and a Sun Certified Programmer for the Java 2 Platform.

• Recognition & Leadership

Ken received the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Information Technology from Attorney General Janet Reno. He is a Founding and former Board Member of the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP) and currently serves on the IAAP’s Certification Committee.

• Professional Involvement

Ken is a frequent lecturer sought after by major international accessibility conferences for his knowledge of both law and technology. He has trained teams on proper HTML coding for accessibility and has led continuing legal education courses for attorneys on legal defenses in web accessibility cases under the Americans with Disabilities Act and California’s Unruh Act.

• Experience

Ken’s career has spanned both federal government enforcement and private-sector accessibility practice. At the U.S. Department of Justice’s Disability Rights Section, he developed nationwide ADA policies for the internet and represented the United States in federal court litigation. He now combines that legal background with deep technical expertise to advise organizations on digital accessibility, regulatory compliance, and risk management at Converge Accessibility.

SESSION 1 – The Overlay Trap: How Accessibility Widgets Backfire | 1:00pm – 2:00pm

Cover the full overlay story — vendor promises, plaintiff firm targeting, the FTC’s April 2025 accessiBe consent order, and Parikh v. accessiBe — alongside standing under Calcano, mootness under Haynes v. Hooters, and res judicata under Dolce & Gabbana.

BREAK | 2:00pm – 2:10pm

SESSION 2 – ADA Title III Defense Strategy in Overlay Cases | 2:10pm – 3:10pm

Examine ADA Title III website accessibility litigation involving overlay tools from a defense perspective, including how claims are pleaded, how courts evaluate automated accessibility tools, screen reader access theories, and litigation response strategies informed by TransUnion v. Ramirez.