Recap of Washington State’s Employer Social Media Password Bill
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] SB 5211 (passed by Senate April 27, 2013) Both chambers of the Washington legislature passed Substitute Senate Bill 5211, and it now awaits the Governor’s signature. No Washington legislators voted against it. Here are the key…
Misguided Catfishing Scheme Leads to Discipline of College Students — Zimmerman v. Ball State
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with a comment from Eric] Zimmerman v. Ball State Univ., et al., 12-cv-01475-JMS-DML (S.D. Ind. Apr. 15, 2013). (The complaint.) Zimmerman and Sumwalt were students at Ball State University, a public university in Indiana. They apparently…
Ex-Lover Can Use Non-Disparagement Provision to Suppress Revenge Porn–Walls v. Klein
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Walls v. Klein, 2013 Tex. App. LEXIS 2462 (Tx. Ct. App. 4th Dist. Mar. 13, 2013) Walls and Klein were in a romantic relationship that soured. The parties volleyed legal threats but ultimately entered into a…
It’s Legally Okay if Google Thinks Your Name and Erectile Dysfunction Drugs Have Something to Do With Each Other (Forbes Cross-Post)
By Eric Goldman Stayart v. Google Inc., 2013 WL 811793 (7th Cir. March 6, 2013). Would you be upset if people searching for your name are prompted to search for your name plus the name of an erectile dysfunction drug like…
Court Rejects Attempt to Hold Software Company Liable for Surveillance Conducted by Its Customer – Luis v. Zang
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Luis v. Zang, 12 cv 629 (S.D. Oh. Mar. 5, 2013) Divorces have spawned some of the most interesting privacy disputes, such as the cases involving whether GPS surveillance of a vehicle violated one spouse’s privacy…
Ex-Employer’s Hijacking of a LinkedIn Account Is a Publicity Rights Violation–Eagle v. Morgan
[By Venkat with comments from Eric] Eagle v. Morgan, 11-4303 (E.D. Pa. Mar. 12, 2013) We’ve previously covered this dispute over a LinkedIn account. (See Another Set of Parties Duel Over Social Media Contacts; Battle Over LinkedIn Account Between Employer…
Buying Keyword Ads on People’s Names Doesn’t Violate Their Publicity Rights–Habush v. Cannon (Forbes Cross-Post)
By Eric Goldman Habush v. Cannon, 2013 WL 627251 (Wisc. App. Ct. Feb. 21, 2013) Can you imagine someone buying Google ($GOOG) AdWords keyword advertising triggered by your name? Most of us wouldn’t dream of it, usually because our names just…
Lindsay Lohan Loses Publicity Rights Claim Against Pitbull Over Song Lyrics–Lohan v. Perez
By Jake McGowan [writings][LinkedIn] Lohan v. Perez, No. 11-CV-5413 (E.D.N.Y. 2013) Lindsay Lohan just can’t catch a break. In 2007, after a string of unsuccessful movies and a long battle with substance abuse, Lohan found herself on probation for two…
Another Employee Behaves Badly on Social Media. Really, You “Can’t Make This Up.” — In re Palleschi
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with a comment from Eric] Palleschi v. Cassano, 2013 WL 322573 (N.Y. App. Div. Jan. 29, 2013). The trial court decision. Someone calls 911 complaining of a “gynecological emergency.” A fire dept. employee, an emergency medical…
Virginia Supreme Court: Litigant Who “Cleans up” His Facebook Page May Be Sanctioned
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Allied Concrete v. Lester, 2013 Va. LEXIS 8 (Jan. 10, 2013) This case generated some attention at the trial court phase, but for whatever reason I didn’t have a chance to blog it. Lester and his…