Congress Is About To Ruin Its Online Free Speech Masterpiece (Cross-Post)
[Before last week’s Senate hearing on SESTA, I posted a version of this blog post on the ACS Blog. This has been partially superseded by my Senate testimony, which I’ll post more about shortly.] In 1996, Congress became concerned that excessive liability…
University Defeats Cyberbullying Lawsuit Related to Yik Yak–Feminist Majority v. UMW
The plaintiffs are students that run a feminist group at the University of Mary Washington, a public university in Virginia. In response to their public advocacy, they claim that they were cyberbullied via Yik Yak. (Examples of the posted Yaks: “these feminists…
Facebook Wins Appeal Over Allegedly Discriminatory Content Removal–Sikhs for Justice v. Facebook
[It’s impossible to blog about Section 230 without reminding you that Congress is on the cusp of gutting it.] I previously summarized this case: Sikhs for Justice (“SFJ”) is a human rights group advocating for Sikh independence in the Indian…
Global Content Removals Based on Local Legal Violations (Internet Law Casebook Excerpt)
[Eric’s note: I’m sharing an excerpt from my Internet Law casebook discussing transborder content removal orders, including the Equustek case.] From the Internet’s earliest days, the tension between a global communication network and local geography-based laws has been obvious. One…
Blogger Isn’t Liable for Anonymous Comments–Griffith v. Wall
[It’s impossible to blog about Section 230 without reminding you that Congress is on the cusp of gutting it.] Griffith blogs at the Lumberton Informer. He has criticized Wall, Lumberton’s municipal clerk. The blog allows anonymous comments, and Wall claimed…
On Remand, Ninth Circuit Says Robins Satisfied Article III Standing
Robins v. Spokeo is a putative class action that looked like it would examine the contours of Article III standing. The Supreme Court remanded to the Ninth Circuit so it could take a second look as to whether Spokeo’s allegations amounted…
German Court Says Ad-Blocking is Liberation, Not Extortion (Guest Blog Post)
[By guest blogger Russell A. Miller, the JB Stombock Professor of Law at Washington & Lee University, where his teaching and research focuses on German law and legal culture. He is the co-founder and Co-Editor-in-Chief of the German Law Journal. He has…
Homeowners Can’t Sue Over Low Zestimates–Patel v. Zillow
Have you ever looked at Zillow’s zestimate for your residence? I treat zestimates as entertainment more than truth, much like going to an astrologer. But if the zestimate is way below a property’s listing price, that’s going to spook some…
‘Reaction’ Video Protected By Fair Use–Hosseinzadeh v. Klein
Plaintiff Matt Hosseinzadeh published a video skit featuring the “Bold Guy” character, “Bold Guy vs. Parkour Girl” video. Ethan and Hila Klein created a “reaction video” to it. Hosseinzadeh’s video is five minutes and twenty-four seconds. The Kleins used three…
Backpage Executives Must Face Money Laundering Charges Despite Section 230–People v. Ferrer
Yesterday, a California superior court judge dismissed pimping charge (due to Section 230) but did not dismiss money laundering charges against three Backpage executives. This ruling has potentially significant consequences for Backpage and its executives, the pending Congressional bills to…