American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
The accountants who certify other accountants couldn't certify blind ones.
Jane Doe, a blind candidate for the Uniform CPA Exam, requested screen-reader accessibility and additional time. The American Institute of CPAs and the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy — the two organizations that run the CPA exam — refused. She complained to the DOJ.
The DOJ settled with both organizations in 2019. They paid $15,000 to the complainant, paid $1,000–$10,000 to other affected candidates, and rebuilt the exam to work with JAWS and ZoomText. The lesson is uncomfortable for B2B regulators: licensure, testing, and credentialing all fall under the ADA. If a profession's gatekeeper isn't accessible, the entire profession is closed to disabled candidates.
Settlement
$15,000 to named complainant Jane Doe; $1,000–$10,000 to add…
Court
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Massachusetts (administrative settlement)
Case
United States v. American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and National Association of State Boards of Accountancy
Administrative — no federal court docket; U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Massachusetts
Outcome
settled
What went wrong on the site
Each visual below shows what visitors with disabilities actually experienced.
<div onClick="buy()">
<div>Buy now</div>
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Custom controls had no ARIA roles, so screen readers could not announce what they were or what state they were in.
WCAG 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value
Sources & documentation
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