Another TOS Formation Failure in the 9th Circuit–Godun v. JustAnswer
This case involves the JustAnswer service, which ensnares possibly unsuspecting consumers into an auto-renewal that consumers allegedly don’t want. JustAnswers’ TOS formation process was rejected in the California state courts. It fares no better in federal court. Important nomenclature note:…
Ninth Circuit Takes a Wrecking Ball to Internet Personal Jurisdiction Law–Briskin v. Shopify
Let’s start with a tiny piece of good news. The majority says: “The parties agree among themselves that we need not develop an internet-specific standard for personal jurisdiction. We also agree.” No need for Internet exceptionalist rules. Yay! With that…
Court Permanently Enjoins Ohio’s Segregate-and-Suppress/Parental Consent Law–NetChoice v. Yost
Ohio enacted a segregate-and-suppress law that requires regulated websites to obtain parental consent before minors can access certain site features. In early 2024, the court granted a preliminary injunction against the law going into effect. Borrowing heavily from its prior…
WeChat Defeats Account Termination Lawsuit–Sun v. WeChat
I’m blogging this otherwise unremarkable case for completeness. WeChat blocked Sun’s account in 2022, allegedly because Sun was discussing Chinese politics. Sun sued WeChat pro se for violating his civil rights (a 1983 claim). This is an easy dismissal. As…
TikTok Defeats Lawsuit Over User’s Suicide–Nasca v. Bytedance
The court summarizes: The plaintiffs commenced this action in connection with the death by suicide of 16 year old Chase Nasca on February 18, 2022 after he walked in front of a train. Plaintiffs’ complaint alleges twelve causes of action…
Arkansas’ Social Media Safety Act Permanently Enjoined—NetChoice v. Griffin
NetChoice challenged Arkansas Act 689 of 2023, the “Social Media Safety Act.” This is a segregate-and-suppress law: the law requires some social media platforms to age-authenticate all users and prevent minors from opening accounts without parental consent. The court preliminarily…
Why I Emphatically Oppose Online Age Verification Mandates
I’ve posted a new paper, “The “Segregate-and-Suppress” Approach to Regulating Child Safety Online.” If that phrase sounds familiar, it’s because I’ve been referencing this paper on the blog for months. The paper details my extensive and multi-dimensional criticisms of mandatory…
Rounding Up Some Recent Copyright Decisions
A few recent copyright cases worthy of blog coverage, but not worthy of a standalone post. Omnia Studios Ltd. v. JD E-Commerce America Ltd., 2025 WL 961473 (W.D.N.Y. March 31, 2025) This case involves the service Joybuy, which listed items…
SAD Scheme-Style Case Falls Apart When the Defendant Appears in Court—King Spider v. Pandabuy
The parties’ names make this case sound more like a Hollywood blockbuster movie than a SAD Scheme-like case. This suit isn’t a classic SAD Scheme case because the plaintiffs went after the marketplace, not the merchants. This case involves the…
Facebook Defeats Armslist’s Account Termination Lawsuit–Armslist v. Facebook
In 2020, Facebook and Instagram terminated various Armslist-related accounts, and Facebook prevented users from sending the URL armslist.com in private messages. Armslist claims these actions were in response to government jawboning targeting Armslist. Armslist sued Facebook and Instagram, alleging that…