Most ADA demand letters are structured the same way. The response to them can be structured the same way too. This article gives you a sample response, paragraph by paragraph, with the reasoning behind each choice.
The sample below is generalized. Every situation has facts that change the right wording. Use this as a starting point, not a final document. If the demand involves a dollar figure that would materially damage your business, retain counsel.
What a response must do
A response to an ADA website demand letter has four jobs.
First, establish that you received the letter and are taking it seriously. This is about professionalism, not concession.
Second, avoid admitting liability. An admission, even a casual one, becomes a settlement lever.
Third, request the specific information the letter usually omits. The plaintiff's actual attempt to use the site. The pages they tried. The assistive technology they used. The relief they specifically seek beyond a dollar number.
Fourth, document what you are already doing and what you plan to do. This is your good faith record.
Sample response
Below is a letter you can adapt. Replace bracketed items with your facts. Do not cut the specificity questions. Those are the most useful part of the document.
[Date]
Via Certified Mail and Email
[Plaintiff attorney name] [Law firm name] [Address]
Re: Your demand letter dated [date] regarding [your website URL]
Dear Counsel,
This letter is in response to your correspondence of [date] concerning alleged Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act claims against [your business legal name] and its website, [URL].
We acknowledge receipt of your letter. We take the accessibility of our website seriously and have been engaged in conformance work with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines since [date or "prior to receipt of your letter"]. Our current accessibility statement is available at [URL or "is being prepared for publication"].
Before we can meaningfully evaluate the allegations in your letter, we require the following information, which was not included:
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The specific date or dates on which your client attempted to access [your website URL].
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The specific assistive technology your client used during the attempt, including product name and version.
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The specific pages or features your client attempted to access, and the specific task your client was trying to complete.
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The specific WCAG 2.1 Level AA success criteria alleged to have been violated, with reference to the exact page or feature on which each violation occurred.
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Documentation of any attempt by your client to contact [your business name] through the accessibility feedback channel on our website prior to the issuance of your letter.
We ask for these specifics for two reasons. First, we are already conducting a conformance audit and are committing resources to remediation. Specific findings allow us to prioritize accurately. Second, a demand letter that does not identify specific conduct, specific barriers, and a specific attempt by a specific individual is insufficient on its face to establish standing under the ADA.
We are willing to address substantiated accessibility issues through an accessibility conformance plan. We are not willing to entertain a settlement figure in the absence of the specifics requested above.
Please direct any further correspondence to [your contact] at [email and phone].
Sincerely,
[Your name] [Your title] [Your business legal name]
Why each paragraph is written that way
The salutation. Certified mail and email both. Certified mail matters for the record. Email creates a faster response loop and shows you are responsive.
The acknowledgment paragraph. "We take accessibility seriously" is not an admission. "We have been engaged in conformance work since [date]" establishes that your accessibility effort predates the letter, which is the core of a good faith defense. If it does not predate the letter, do not include the date. Say "are engaged in" in the present tense.
The specificity request. This is the paragraph that does the most work. Courts evaluate standing in ADA Title III cases in part on whether the plaintiff actually attempted to use the site in a specific way and encountered a specific barrier. Plaintiff's firms running volume operations often send letters without this information — see how volume filings actually work. Asking for specifics accomplishes two things. It slows the letter down. And if they do not provide it, you have a stronger record when arguing that the claim is vague.
The willingness paragraph. "We are willing to address substantiated accessibility issues" tells a judge you are acting in good faith. "We are not willing to entertain a settlement figure" tells the plaintiff you are not going to pay to make it disappear. Both matter.
The closing. Keep it clean. No expressions of outrage. No characterization of the letter. The record is what matters.
What not to include in a response
Do not apologize. Apologies get quoted back.
Do not describe specific technical issues you have identified unless you are certain they match what the letter alleges. You can unintentionally admit to violations the plaintiff did not know about.
Do not offer a dollar figure, even a small one. Once a figure is in the record, negotiation starts there.
Do not threaten counter-action. It does not help and it can make a volume filer look like a harassment victim, which they are not.
Do not sign the letter "without prejudice" or "under reservation of rights." Those phrases sound protective but they have specific legal meaning that may not apply to your situation. A clean signature from a business owner is the right call for a non-legal response.
When to switch from self-response to counsel
Switch to counsel if any of the following is true.
The demand exceeds twenty-five thousand dollars. The economics change.
The letter is on the letterhead of a plaintiff's firm that has filed more than fifty similar cases in the last twelve months. Those firms litigate. A self-response is unlikely to end the matter.
The letter threatens filing in federal court within a specific number of days, and that number is less than thirty. Volume filers use this language. So do firms that are going to actually file. You cannot tell the difference from the letter alone.
You received a second letter after your first response. At that point the back-and-forth has a pattern, and counsel is better equipped to navigate it.
After you send the response
Calendar a check-in for fourteen days after your response letter. Most volume letters go quiet after a specificity request. A percentage come back with requested details. A smaller percentage proceed to filing anyway.
Keep remediating during the wait. Nothing in the response letter stops you from improving the site. The more remediation you complete between your response and any follow-up, the stronger your position becomes. The good-faith effort pattern is what courts weigh when evaluating whether your response was serious.
The sample response is not legal advice. For a specific demand letter affecting your specific business, consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction.