Industry groups are increasingly going to bat in court for credit unions that are facing lawsuits regarding the accessibility of their websites.
In recent weeks, the Michigan Credit Union League, Cornerstone Credit Union Association, NAFCU and CUNA have all filed amicus curiae ("friend of the court") briefs in several cases brought against credit unions under the Americans with Disabilities Act. The briefs, which are typically filed by entities that aren't parties in a case but have a strong interest in its outcome, often provide additional information or arguments to the court for consideration.
The Michigan Credit Union League's 31-page amicus brief filed on February 15 in an ADA case against Casco, Michigan-based Belle River Community Credit Union, for example, told the court the case should be dismissed. Belle River Community has $21 million in assets and about 2,100 members.
"MCUL and its member credit unions recognize the importance of the ADA and fully support the ability of all Americans to have access to a broad array of financial services, including credit unions," it wrote. "However, the ADA and the Department of Justice's regulations are currently silent on website accessibility standards….Plaintiff and her attorney seem to be attempting to capitalize on this regulatory vacuum with this action, along with wholesale issuances of demand letters and identical threats of litigation to numerous other credit unions across the state."
Cornerstone Credit Union League, which represents credit unions in Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma, filed an amicus brief this week with CUNA in a case against Houston-based BCM Federal Credit Union. BCM has $41 million in assets and about 5,200 members.
"CUNA and Cornerstone Credit Union Association are fighting back against an unscrupulous lawsuit alleging website noncompliance under ADA," CUNA President and CEO Jim Nussle said today. "Credit unions are being hit with virtually identical lawsuits from plaintiffs' firms exploiting a law designed to protect those with disabilities. We intend to take similar action with the Illinois Credit Union League soon in a case against an Illinois credit union and anticipate engaging in several cases around the country in the coming weeks to maximize our impact on behalf of all credit unions and to ensure we preserve our arguments for any litigation that makes it to the appellate level."
NAFCU and representatives from the Maryland-D.C. Credit Union Association have attended a hearing in at least one case.
It's unclear whether and how the amicus briefs and court appearances could influence any of the cases, however.
On January 26, Herndon, Virginia-based Northwest Federal Credit Union prevailed in an ADA lawsuit brought against it, though that seems to have done little to deter new filings. As of February 22, at least 100 credit unions have been sued over the accessibility of their websites since September 2017, according to a CU Times review of court filings. At least a dozen of those were filed on or after January 26.
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