Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer and the National Association of the Deaf are suing the Trump White House for failing to provide American Sign Language interpreters during COVID-19 briefings.

The complaint, filed in D.C. trial court Monday on behalf of NAD and five deaf individuals, alleges that President Donald Trump "now stands alone in holding televised briefings regarding the COVID-19 pandemic without ever having provided any ASL interpretation." Other briefings held by state and local authorities frequently feature the interpreters.

"This means that not only are [deaf and hard of hearing] Americans being denied the opportunity to understand any communication from the President of the United States during this critical time, they are also being denied the opportunity to access information, analysis, and updates from Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx—two renowned public health experts," the complaint reads. "With COVID-19 cases spiking in many states across the country, it is more important than ever that all Americans have access to up to date, public health information in the coming months."

The lawsuit targets Trump, the White House, the Executive Office of the President, Vice President Mike Pence's office and White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany. 

Trump and his coronavirus task force began holding daily pressers in the spring, before pausing the briefings. The White House has recently resumed the afternoon press conferences, as COVID-19 cases spike in several states that had attempted to reopen.

The complaint alleges that not offering the sign language interpreters violates Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, which requires federal agencies to ensure that individuals with disabilities are not "excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination" in any of their programs or activities. 

The lawsuit also alleges First Amendment violations and seeks a writ of mandamus or other court order requiring the White House "to provide live televised in-frame ASL interpretation at all public briefings conducted by defendants that address issues concerning COVID-19, including all such briefings involving President Trump, Vice President Pence, Press Secretary McEnany, or any members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force."

Deaf plaintiffs named in the complaint have been unable to get information from the briefings, according to the court filing. One named plaintiff, Corey Axelrod, "has attempted to understand the White House briefings on television, on the Internet, and on social media, but is often unable to do so because there is no ASL interpreter and the captioning is often delayed and inaccurate on television or not available on the Internet or social media," the lawsuit reads.

Arnold & Porter partner Ian Hoffman and Marc Charmatz of the NAD Law and Advocacy Center filed the complaint. 

"All 50 states' governors have provided ASL interpretation for their public briefings relating to COVID-19, and most now do so consistently. The White House has never done so," Hoffman said in a statement. "The law prohibits this exclusion of deaf people from the president's public briefings. We are proud to stand with our clients and all deaf and hard of hearing Americans who rely on interpreters and want equal access to the president's communications during this public health crisis."