Twitter Didn’t Cause ISIS-Inspired Terrorism–Fields v. Twitter
[It’s impossible to blog about Section 230 without reminding you that it remains highly imperiled.] The Ninth Circuit issued its ruling in Fields v. Twitter, the first appellate ruling to address if and when social media services like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube can be…
Displaying Emoji Evidence in Judicial Opinions
This is another outtake from my Emojis and the Law paper. I’m nearly done with a massive rewrite of the paper, and this passage appears destined for the cutting-room floor. So I’m sharing it here: ___ Judicial opinions rarely provide…
Plaintiff’s Location-Based Privacy Claim Against BART Reporting App Fails
In Moreno v. S.F. Bay Area Rapid Transit District, the plaintiff sued BART and Elerts Corporation for allegedly violating several California privacy statutes and infringing plaintiff’s common law and constitutional privacy rights. The court rejects the claims. BART, in cooperation…
DMCA Counternotification Doesn’t Create Personal Jurisdiction in Copyright Owner’s Home Court–Real v. Matteo
This case combines one of my favorite Internet Law topics, 17 USC 512, with one of my least favorite, personal jurisdiction. TL;DR: if a foreign national submits a 512(g) counternotification, it doesn’t ensure the copyright owner can sue in its home…
Call for Papers: IAMCR 2018 in Oregon
I’m passing along this request from Loreto Corredoira, a communications and Internet Law professor at Universidad Complutense de Madrid, about the annual conference for the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR). The deadlines are approaching fast (sorry), so act promptly if…
Some Upcoming Internet Law and Privacy Events at Santa Clara Law
We’re holding some outstanding Internet Law and privacy events on campus this semester that I wanted to make sure you knew about: * January 30, noon to 1: Ed Felten on the Future of Artificial Intelligence * February 2, all day: Content Moderation and…
Section 230 Again Preempts Suit Against Facebook for Supporting Terrorists–Force v. Facebook
[It’s impossible to blog about Section 230 without reminding you that it remains highly imperiled.] This is one of the many cases against social media sites for allegedly providing material support to terrorists. In May 2017, the court dismissed this case…
55 Academics and Advocates Urge NAFTA Trade Negotiators To Add Internet Immunity
55 scholars and organizations submitted a letter to NAFTA negotiators from Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. encouraging them to incorporate Section 230-like protection into NAFTA’s proposed digital trade chapter. Here is the SCU media alert: * * * Fifty-five Internet law experts…
What’s New With SESTA/FOSTA (January 17, 2018 edition)
It’s been over a month since I last blogged about SESTA, FOSTA, and Congress’ efforts to address Section 230 and sex trafficking. So it seems like a good time to do an update on recent developments. The holidays were quiet,…
Search Engines Aren’t Liable for Indexing ‘Scam’ Locksmith Listings–Baldino’s Lock v. Google
[It’s impossible to blog about Section 230 without reminding you that it remains highly imperiled.] The plaintiff in this case, Baldino’s Lock & Key, brought a very similar lawsuit in 2014. It alleged that Google indexed scam locksmiths and allowed them…