This case involves “Amazon Flex” drivers. Allegedly, “Amazon monitored and wiretapped the drivers’ conversations when they communicated during off hours in closed Facebook groups.” Amazon claimed its TOS mandated arbitration. The Ninth Circuit disagrees. At issue are two versions of…

Microsoft Can Terminate User Account for Allegedly Possessing CSAM. But What If It Made a Mistake?--Deutsch v. Microsoft

The plaintiff (a NY lawyer/financial executive?) allegedly uploaded CSAM to his Microsoft OneDrive folder in violation of Microsoft’s “Code of Conduct.” [Nomenclature note: CSAM is what used to be called child porn; the case calls it CSEAI]. Allegedly, PhotoDNA detected…

Twitter Defeats Account Suspension Case--Craft v. Musk

The opinion summarizes the allegations: Defendants Twitter, Inc. and its CEO, Elon Musk, violated his First Amendment rights by blocking his Twitter account twice, for a period of seven days each, in February and March 2023. According to Plaintiff, he…

Prisoners have limited free speech rights. Among other things, their outgoing written communications are typically reviewed before sending. The Hill Correctional Center in Illinois bans prisoners from sending “coded” messages that the reviewers can’t understand. (I imagine other prisons have…

New Article: "The United States’ Approach to 'Platform' Regulation"

I’ve posted a new 5,000 word article, The United States’ Approach to “Platform” Regulation. The abstract: This paper summarizes the United States’ legal framework governing Internet “platforms” that publish third-party content. It highlights three key features of U.S. law: the…

Do Mandatory Age Verification Laws Conflict with Biometric Privacy Laws?--Kuklinski v. Binance

California passed the California Age-Appropriate Design Code (AADC) nominally to protect children’s privacy, but at the same time, the AADC requires businesses to do an age “assurance” of all their users, children and adults alike. (Age “assurance” requires the business…

Service Provider to a Ponzi Scheme Operation Qualifies for Section 230--Wiand v. ATC Brokers

[This opinion was issued 6 months ago, but it just showed up in my alerts.] This case involves an alleged Ponzi scheme involving foreign currency exchanges (“forex”). In addition to the direct participants in the scheme, the CFTC pursued Spotex,…

This case involves a UGC anime site called Gelbooru, run by Hopson. Rightsowners sent DMCA takedown notices targeting the site to Google. (Lumen has many takedown notices containing the word “Gelbooru”). Google stripped out the notices’ identifying information and forwarded…

The First Amendment Limits Trademark Rights, But How?--Jack Daniel's v. Bad Spaniels (Guest Blog Post)

by guest blogger Lisa P. Ramsey [Lisa P. Ramsey is a Professor of Law at the University of San Diego School of Law. She writes and teaches in the trademark law area, and was one of the signatories of the…

You're a Fool if You Think You Can Win a 512(f) Case--Security Police and Fire Professionals v. Maritas

Today is April Fool’s day, and longtime readers know that I do not participate in gags that undermine my credibility as a blogger. So this post is 100% true, even if it might sound farcical. * * * This ruling…