How to fix list on WordPress.org

Steps for WordPress.org

1. To avoid losing changes on theme updates, create a child theme. Copy the offending template file (e.g. 'header.php', 'page.php') into your child theme directory.
2. Open the file in a code editor (or Appearance → Theme File Editor) and search for '<ul', '<ol', '<li' to locate invalid nesting.
3. Correct the markup: only <li> as direct children of <ul>/<ol>, and every <li> must live inside a list container.
4. For menus, WordPress outputs standard <ul>/<li> structure via 'wp_nav_menu()'. If a custom Walker class is used (often in 'functions.php'), find the walker and correct the render_list_item / start_el methods to output proper <li> tags.
5. Clear caching (plugin or server), then re-audit with the axe DevTools extension.

What is list?

HTML has strict rules about how lists must be structured. An unordered list (`<ul>`) or ordered list (`<ol>`) should contain only `<li>` (list item) elements as direct children — nothing else. Likewise, every `<li>` must live inside a `<ul>`, `<ol>`, or `<menu>` element. A "list" violation means your page has markup that breaks these rules: for example, a `<div>` or `<p>` placed directly inside a `<ul>`, bare `<li>` tags floating outside any list container, or `<li>` elements nested inside each other without a proper parent. These mistakes are often invisible to sighted visitors, but they create a broken experience for users who rely on assistive technology such as screen readers.

Screen readers (used by roughly 7 million Americans) use list structure to announce "list of 5 items" and let users jump between items quickly. Broken list markup confuses this navigation, causing screen reader users to miss navigation menus, product feature lists, size guides, and checkout steps — directly costing you customers and raising legal exposure under ADA, Section 508, and the European Accessibility Act. Google also uses semantic HTML to understand page structure; malformed lists can weaken how well your navigation and content are parsed. Because courts have increasingly applied ADA Title III to e-commerce websites, incorrect accessibility markup is a genuine legal risk, not just a best-practice issue.

See the complete List guide for every platform and the full background.