Section 230 Protects Gmail’s Spam Filter–RNC v. Google
[My blogging queue has gotten backlogged. I’m slowly catching up. I hope you enjoy these 2,800 words on legal topics you assumed were definitively resolved over a dozen years ago.] Introduction This lawsuit is one of the many lawsuits around…
The DTSA Ex Parte Seizure Provision Was Always Bad Policy–Janssen v. Evenus
In 2016, Congress enacted the Defend Trade Secret Act (DTSA). Among other provisions, it created a brand-new remedy, the ex parte seizure order, that allows trade secret owners to grab allegedly stolen trade secret items before they are spirited away…
Section 230 Once Again Applies to Claims Over Offline Sexual Abuse–Doe v. Grindr
John Doe, a 13 year old, created a Grindr profile and connected with Pritt. They met offline and engaged in sex. Doe sued Grindr for negligence and IIED. Grindr successfully defends on Section 230 grounds. ICS Provider. Yes. Cite to…
This Blog Has Jumped the Shark: I’m Covering a Copyright Opinion About a Tattoo of Tiger King’s Joe Exotic–Cramer v. Netflix
In the early days of the pandemic, tattoo artist Cramer created this tattoo and tattooed it onto her husband: The tattoo depicts Joe Exotic of Tiger King “fame,” a can of Lysol, some coronaviruses, and the words “Quarantine 2020.” None…
Copyright Lawsuits Over Product Shots Are Still Stupid–SMS v. Pharmaaid
SMS has copyright registrations in photos of its pump dispensers. It claims that a rival, Pharmaaid, is selling identical products and displays SMS’s photos in its Amazon store and on product packaging. Here’s SMS’s purported visual proof of Pharmaaid’s infringements:…
Call for Participation: WIPIP, Santa Clara, Feb. 2-3, 2024
The High Tech Law Institute invites you to participate in the 21st annual Works-in-Progress Intellectual Property Colloquium (WIPIP), which will be held February 2-3, 2024, at Santa Clara University School of Law, in Santa Clara, California. This is an in-person…
Louisiana’s Age Authentication Mandate Avoids Constitutional Scrutiny Using a Legislative Drafting Trick–Free Speech Coalition v. LeBlanc
You may have heard of this legislative drafting trick before. The legislature passes a law that’s likely unconstitutional, but the law doesn’t provide for enforcement by any state actors. Instead, the law creates a “bounty” system that rewards bounty hunters…
Section 230 Applies to Employee’s Post on Government-Operated Internal Message Board–Montanino v. New York City Dep’t of Sanitation
The New York City Department of Sanitation runs an internal message board for employees. An as-yet-unidentified employee posted a message to the board regarding a civil-service test cheating scandal. The pseudonymous message claimed that the plaintiff leaked the answers to…
Think Kiwi Farms Is Legally Unassailable? Copyright Law Might Disagree–Greer v. Moon
Kiwi Farms, operated by Joshua Moon, is best known for coordinating cyberattacks on individuals, especially people with disabilities. Few people would lament the site’s demise, but to date it has avoided legal exposure (1, 2) and survived multiple deplatformings (e.g.,…
Comments on the Ruling Declaring California’s Age-Appropriate Design Code (AADC) Unconstitutional–NetChoice v. Bonta
[Sorry it’s take me this long to get this blog post off my desk. I hope it was worth the wait.] We’ve seen a flood of terrible Internet laws in the past few years, including the California Age-Appropriate Design Code…