Accessibility
We build this site, and the deadline tool on it, to WCAG 2.1 Level AA. Here is what we have done, what we know is still incomplete, and how to reach a person if something on this site keeps you from getting the information you came for.
Our target
The standard we build to is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, Level AA. That is the benchmark most commonly referenced in United States law and the one we hold this site to.
We are not claiming this site is flawless. Accessibility is something you maintain, not something you finish. What we can tell you is what we have actually built and checked, and what we know is still outstanding.
What we have done
- Contrast. Every text and background pair on the site comes from a fixed palette, and each pair was measured against the WCAG ratios (4.5:1 for normal text, 3:1 for large text and for boundaries that carry meaning) before it was allowed into the design system. Colors that only pass on a dark background are not permitted as text on a light one. The tool's result tiles use the same measured pairs.
- Tap targets. Buttons, links in navigation, form controls and the choice tiles in the deadline tool are at least 44 by 44 pixels. Most of the people reading this site are on a phone.
- Keyboard navigation. Everything you can do with a mouse you can do with a keyboard: the menu, the language selector, the forms, every link. Focus indicators are visible, not suppressed.
- The deadline tool is keyboard operable. Every step of the tool is made of ordinary form controls: radio buttons for the agency and the kind of claim, a date field for the incident, a button to copy the summary. You can move through it with Tab and the arrow keys and run it with Enter or Space.
- Results are announced. The tool's result area is a live region. When you change an answer and the dates change, a screen reader announces the new result without you having to hunt for it.
- Skip link. A "Skip to content" link is the first thing in the tab order on every page.
- Headings. One H1 per page, and headings in order, so a screen reader user can move through a page by section.
- Tables. Every data table has a header row and sits inside a region that can be scrolled with the keyboard on a narrow screen.
- Images. Every photograph carries descriptive alternative text. Decorative images are marked so that screen readers skip them.
- Motion. The small amount of motion on the site (a slow drift on dark sections, a fade as content comes into view) is turned off when your system asks for reduced motion, and nothing on the site is ever hidden until you scroll.
- Text size. The site is built in relative units and works at 200 percent browser zoom without horizontal scrolling.
What is still incomplete
- The language selector uses a third-party translation layer. The translated text is machine-produced and its quality varies by language. Legal terms in particular may be translated imprecisely. If you need a document in another language, ask us for one.
- The photographs are illustrative and are described in their alternative text, but they are not essential to understanding any page. If an image does not load, nothing is lost.
- We have tested with recent versions of Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge, with VoiceOver and NVDA. We have not tested every combination of browser and assistive technology.
If something is in your way
If any part of this site is hard or impossible for you to use, tell us and we will fix it or get you the information another way. Call (718) 484-7510 or email info@usherlegal.com and say which page and what happened. A person, not a form, will answer.
The firm's own practice includes disability access cases, and we hold ourselves to the standard we ask of others.