Senate Judiciary Committee Passes Amended Defend Trade Secrets Act. What Changed? (Guest Blog Post)
By Guest Blogger Sharon K. Sandeen The Defend Trade Secrets Act (S. 1890) passed out of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary today, but not before it was amended to address a number of concerns that were voiced by…
What’s the Legal Definition of a “Social Media Site”? Uh… (People v. Lopez)
I’ve previously discussed “social media exceptionalism,” i.e., the development of legal rules applicable only to social media predicated on the assumption that it’s somehow unique, special or different from other media, online or off. I’ve never found a principled justification…
It’s Not Harassment To Talk Tough About Your Court Case (And Litigation Opponent) In Social Media
David and Textor are involved in litigation around their companies, which make holographic performances of dead famous musicians (most famously, for example, MJ and Tupac). David’s company sued Textor’s for patent infringement, and in a separate lawsuit, Textor’s sued David’s…
Posting Mocking Photo To Social Media May Be Tortious….If You’re Shaq–Binion v. O’Neal
Jahmel Binion alleges that Shaquille O’Neal posted to Instagram and Twitter a picture of him that portrayed Binion in a derogatory capacity. Binion suffers from a skin disease that left him disfigured. Shaq posted a picture of Binion side-by-side with…
Oculus Faces Messy Ownership Claims Over Its Head Mounted Display–Total Recall v. Luckey
Palmer Luckey, who ultimately developed the much-hyped Oculus Rift, entered into an agreement with a company called “Total Recall”. Although it was not crystal clear, the agreement was technically with Thomas Seidl, one of the partners of Total Recall. The…
Section 230 Doesn’t Protect Email Forwarding of Screenshotted Tweets?–Maxfield v. Maxfield
This case is a spinout ancillary lawsuit from the main divorce proceedings between the parties, and neither party was represented by a lawyer in this case. Given those attributes, this case may not be good precedent, but I’m blogging it…
More Data Breach Lawsuits Fail In Court–Michaels Stores and SuperValu
Courts recently dismissed more data breach lawsuits for failure to allege harm. Michael Stores: Michaels confirmed that consumer account information had been compromised and acknowledged that approximately 2.6 million cards could have been affected between 2013 and 2014. It offered…
2H 2015 Quick Links, Part 8 (Consumer Reviews, Google)
Consumer Reviews * In the hotel industry, “social media postings are resulting in additional capital expenditures as owners become more aware of and respond to criticisms and unfavorable comments. This effect became significant starting around 2012 and continues to increase.”…
2H 2015 Quick Links, Part 7 (Marketing, Advertising, E-Commerce)
Marketing/Advertising * Jezebel: The Big Bad World of Products Celebrities Promote on Instagram. Related blog post. * NY Times: Cool Influencers With Big Followings Get Picky About Their Endorsements * NY Times: Since signing with Brooks on Jan. 1, 2014,…
Big Fish’s Virtual Casino Doesn’t Violate Washington’s Gambling Statute
Eric and Angie blogged about the Machine Zone slot machine ruling from Maryland. This is a similar lawsuit brought against Big Fish, alleging that Big Fish’s virtual casino violates Washington’s anti-gambling statute. (Here’s a Recorder article covering these and other…