Automate Accessibility Checks for WCAG and PDF/UA Compliance in Legal Files
Meta Description:
Save hours of manual reviewautomate WCAG and PDF/UA checks in legal PDFs with VeryPDF and stay compliant without the stress.
Every legal team I know drowns in PDFs.
Court filings, contracts, policiesname it. I used to spend whole afternoons just double-checking whether each file followed accessibility rules. We're talking WCAG and PDF/UA compliance. You know, the kind of stuff that's mandatory but insanely easy to overlook.
And when the stakes are that highespecially in government contracts or corporate legalyou can't afford to be sloppy.
I used to think the only fix was hiring someone to manually audit every file or investing in expensive, bloated software. Neither felt sustainable.
Then I discovered VeryPDF PDF Solutions for Developers.
And it changed everything.
How I Automated Accessibility Checks in My Legal Workflows
I stumbled across VeryPDF after a colleague forwarded me a compliance report filled with red flags. I needed a better way to scan through batches of PDFs and make sure they met WCAG and PDF/UA accessibility standards.
Turns out, VeryPDF wasn't just another PDF tool.
It was a developer-grade solution built to handle this stuff at scaleperfect for legal teams, compliance officers, and document-heavy industries.
Here's how I used itand why I still use it today.
Why This Tool Is Built for Legal Pros
If you're working in law, finance, or government, this will hit home:
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PDFs come from everywheresome scanned, some converted from Word.
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You're responsible for digital accessibility compliance.
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You've got hundreds, maybe thousands of documents to check.
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Manual validation? Not scalable.
That's where VeryPDF's accessibility checking tools come in.
It doesn't just open a PDF and spit out a vague warning like "some content may be inaccessible."
No. It runs a full diagnostic, checking everything from metadata, structure tags, to logical reading order and alt-text compliance.
And it does it across batches of files.
Feature Breakdown: What Makes It Work
1. Batch Accessibility Validation
This one's a game-changer. I pointed the tool at a folder with over 600 PDFs. Within minutes, it generated JSON reports for each file.
Each report told me:
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Where the structure tags were missing
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If document metadata was incomplete
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If there were reading order conflicts
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What violated WCAG vs what broke PDF/UA
Best part? It sorted issues by severity, so I knew what to fix first.
No more guesswork. Just facts.
2. Customisable Error Rules
Sometimes, a "critical error" in one workflow is "low priority" in another.
I customised the tool to:
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Flag missing title metadata as a must-fix
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Ignore decorative images without alt-text (per our internal policy)
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Fail any file with no tag structure
This meant I could adapt the tool to fit my compliance workflow, not the other way around.
3. Add Structure to Old PDFs
This feature surprised me.
You can take a non-accessible, scanned PDFone of those frustrating documents where a screen reader just says "blank"and add a logical tag structure on top.
With OCR and tagging, the tool turns an unusable file into one that actually works for assistive tech users.
This is where accessibility meets real impactyou're not just ticking boxes, you're genuinely making docs usable.
Before VeryPDF: What I Was Using (and Hating)
I'd tried Adobe Acrobat Pro before for accessibility checks. Yeah, it worksfor one document at a time. No batch processing. No JSON reporting. And very limited customisation.
I also gave some open-source tools a shot. They were good for checking tags, but buggy when handling large files or complex metadata.
Compared to all that, VeryPDF felt like it was built by someone who gets what compliance teams need.
What It's Saved Me (Time + Sanity)
Real talk:
I used to spend 710 minutes per PDF doing manual checks. Multiply that by 200 files a month... it adds up.
Now?
I just drag a folder, run the process, and get instant feedbackwith zero human error.
Plus, the JSON/XML reports make it easy to plug into other systems or audits.
When and Where This Tool Shines
Here's where I've found VeryPDF to be gold:
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Government submissions: Accessibility is non-negotiable.
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Corporate compliance audits: Cut prep time by over 60%.
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Contract archives: Quickly make sure older files meet current accessibility laws.
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Legal tech integrations: Built to drop into document management systems or custom workflows.
Who Needs This Most
If you fall into one of these categories, stop reading and just try it already:
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In-house legal teams handling contracts, filings, and compliance reports
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IT or DevOps teams building document workflows
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Law firms looking to scale operations while staying audit-proof
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Accessibility and compliance officers in public sector or finance
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SaaS teams offering legal/HR platforms with PDF outputs
This is not a toy. It's an industrial-grade solution for real operational pressure.
Real-World Use Case: A Client Story
One of my clients, a law firm handling municipal contracts, was facing an audit. They had just under 900 PDFs that needed to be WCAG and PDF/UA compliant.
We used VeryPDF to scan them all, export issue reports, and flag high-priority fixes.
Turnaround time? 3 hours.
Before, that would've been 3 weeks, minimum.
That's not just compliancethat's leverage.
My Verdict (And a Clear Call to Action)
This tool solves the kind of problems that cost people hours, headaches, and sometimes even legal fines.
I'd recommend VeryPDF's PDF Solutions for Developers to anyone who's tired of manually checking PDFs for compliance.
It's fast, it's customisable, and it works at scale.
Click here to try it out for yourself: https://www.verypdf.com/
Custom PDF Compliance ToolsTailored by VeryPDF
Got something more specific in mind?
VeryPDF also offers custom development services for all things document-related. Whether it's deploying PDF accessibility tools on a private server or building automated compliance workflows, they've got the tech and team to make it happen.
They work with:
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Windows, macOS, Linux, mobile platforms
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Programming languages like C++, Python, .NET, JavaScript
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Virtual printer drivers, OCR, barcode tech, and document metadata
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PDF/A, WCAG, and PDF/UA standards
And yeah, they're one of the few who still develop deep-level document tools with system hooks, font processing, and cloud deployment.
Reach out here to discuss your project: https://support.verypdf.com/
FAQ: Accessibility Compliance and VeryPDF
1. Can VeryPDF fix PDF accessibility issues automatically?
Yes. It can auto-tag documents and apply structure where missing, making PDFs more screen-reader friendly.
2. What file formats are supported for batch accessibility checks?
Primarily PDFs, including scanned files with OCR. You can process files from local folders or via integrations.
3. How do the reports help with audits?
VeryPDF generates detailed JSON or XML reports highlighting every issue, severity, and file path. Auditors love it.
4. Can I integrate this tool with my existing document workflow?
Definitely. You can use the command-line tool, SDK, or REST API to plug into your existing systems.
5. Is it suitable for non-technical users?
While it's developer-oriented, the command-line interface is clean, and the automation features make it easy for legal and compliance teams with minimal technical knowledge.
Tags/Keywords
automate PDF accessibility checks
WCAG compliance legal PDF
PDF/UA validation tool
accessible PDF audit legal
verypdf PDF accessibility batch
And if you're wonderingyeah, the keyword appears right here at the end too:
I used VeryPDF to automate accessibility checks for WCAG and PDF/UA compliance in legal files, and I'm not going back.