Topic: Litigation

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Ninth Circuit joins Eleventh Circuit holding that social media marketers of financial products may be liable as sellers under Securities Law

Photo of Paul Guirguis (US)By Paul Guirguis (US) on Posted in Litigation
Collage of stock numbers and lights               The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently issued an opinion in Pino v. Cardone Capital, LLC that followed the Eleventh Circuit ruling in Wildes v. BitConnect (see our March, 2022 post on that case here: Social media and cryptocurrency fraud), when it held that if a person promotes the sale … Continue reading

Social Media and Jurisdiction under FRCP 4(k)(2

Photo of Susan Ross (US)By Susan Ross (US) on Posted in Litigation
On August 27, 2021, the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in an international trademark dispute where U.S. jurisdiction hinged on Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4(k)(2).  Reversing the trial court, the Ninth Circuit ruled that personal jurisdiction existed over an Australian skin care product company, based in part on that company’s actions on … Continue reading

Social media and secondary liability

Photo of Kate Nelson (US)By Kate Nelson (US) on Posted in Litigation
On June 16, 2021, the Fifth Circuit held that social media providers cannot be held secondarily liable under the Anti-Terrorism Act (“ATA”) for aiding and abetting a foreign terrorist organization based on an individual’s acts within the United States.   Plaintiff Retana, a victim of the July 2016 shooting committed by Micah Johnson (“Johnson”) in Dallas, … Continue reading

Parties May Provide Notice to Class Members Through Social Media

Photo of Phil Di Tullio (US)By Phil Di Tullio (US) on Posted in Employment and labor, Litigation
With the prevalence of employment and labor class action lawsuits, particularly those based on alleged wage and hour violations, the nuances of defending those suits and administering potential settlements are paramount to California employers. One lesser-discussed feature of the class action process is the notice requirement to class members. Throughout the lifespan of the action, … Continue reading

Social media and corporate executive responsibility

Photo of Susan Ross (US)By Susan Ross (US) on Posted in Litigation
Corporations that sell to consumers and are subject to consumer lawsuits commonly receive deposition demands for top executives. Corporations can frequently defeat these demands by showing that the executives did not participate or have control over the matter at issue. But a recent ruling from a federal trial court in California demonstrated how controlling social … Continue reading

Grumpy Cat back in court

Photo of Stephanie Schmidt (US)By Stephanie Schmidt (US) on Posted in Copyright, Litigation, Trademark
We previously reported on Grumpy Cat Limited’s big win in a copyright and trademark suit. As a recap, Grumpy Cat—the social-media-famous grimacing feline, or rather the holding company owned by her “parents”—filed a lawsuit after the defendants went beyond the scope of a licensing agreement to market a variety of Grumpy Cat-themed coffee products. According … Continue reading

The long arm of the law

Photo of Daniel Daniele (CA)By Daniel Daniele (CA) on Posted in Litigation
Businesses today operate in a global, borderless environment, in which social media platforms allow them to market and distribute their goods and services around the world with ease. As a result, it has become more difficult to protect and enforce a company’s intellectual property rights online. For example, an alleged infringer could circumvent a country-specific … Continue reading

How anonymous can you be on social media?

Photo of Joy Wang (US)By Joy Wang (US) on Posted in Litigation
In November of 2017, a federal appeals court rejected employment-related site Glassdoor’s claim that its users had a First Amendment right to anonymity that would protect their information from disclosure pursuant to a grand jury subpoena. The panel also sustained a contempt order that was entered by the district court to enforce the decision.  (In … Continue reading

Social Media Evidence and Pay-Per-View TV

Photo of Susan Ross (US)By Susan Ross (US) on Posted in Litigation
We have previously written about social media posts and advertisements being used as evidence in a variety of legal cases (most recently, a post relating to emojis).  A federal court in Pennsylvania recently used two social media advertisements—from a source the court could not identify—as evidence to support a finding of “willfulness” and to award … Continue reading

Legal Implications of Emoji Use

Photo of Caleb Segrest (US)By Caleb Segrest (US) on Posted in Litigation
Emoticons – the often whimsical hieroglyphics that most so affectionately know as “emojis” – have become ubiquitous in modern digital communication not only by individuals but also by corporations as part of their advertising and marketing campaigns on social media. Emojis have also begun appearing as evidence in court cases. A short, but fascinating, discussion … Continue reading

Use of Twitter to Broadcast Courtroom Proceedings

Photo of Caleb Segrest (US)By Caleb Segrest (US) on Posted in Litigation, Social media policies
In 2017, the Indiana Commission on Judicial Qualifications (the “Commission”) issued an advisory opinion that the conveyance of information via microblogging platforms, such as Twitter, does not constitute prohibited “broadcasting” under Rule 2.17 of the Code of Judicial Conduct. Under Rule 2.17, judges are required to prohibit the broadcasting of courtroom proceedings to the public … Continue reading

Expert Witnesses May (Still) Be Used in U.S. Litigation to Explain Basic Social Media Use

Photo of Sean Topping (US)By Sean Topping (US) on Posted in Defamation, Litigation
On March 8, 2017, federal Judge Sidney Fitzwater, of the North District of Texas, issued a memorandum opinion and order in Charalambopoulos v. Grammer, No. 3:14-CV-2424-D, 2017 WL 930819. The case had already been in litigation for years and involved allegations of domestic violence and defamation.  According to earlier opinions issued in Charalambopoulos, the parties … Continue reading

Facebook’s California Choice-of-Law Provision Rules the Day

Photo of Sean Topping (US)By Sean Topping (US) on Posted in Litigation
On January 9, 2017, the Northern District of California granted Facebook’s motion to dismiss for claims brought under New Jersey’s Truth-in-Consumer Contract, Warranty, and Notice Act (“the TCCWNA”). In Palomino v. Facebook, Inc., a putative class of New Jersey residents challenged Facebook’s Terms of Service, which, among other provisions, require users to waive potential claims … Continue reading

Risks of unlawful social media content: changes in UK defamation landscape and what you need to know

Photo of Joanna Conway (UK)By Joanna Conway (UK) on Posted in Defamation, Litigation, Privacy
A carefully curated social media presence is a critical business requirement, but there are risks. One of these risks is unlawful content – be that unlawful content posted to your businesses’ own social media account (exposing the company to potential liability) or harmful content about your business (or its C-Suite or key personnel) posted on … Continue reading

Serving up lawsuits via Facebook: social media provides creative solution under Federal Rules

Photo of Chandler Stephens (US)By Chandler Stephens (US) on Posted in Litigation
Service of process on a foreign defendant can be a major headache for U.S. plaintiffs, but social media is proving to be a creative solution when traditional methods have been demonstrated to fail. We previously covered a New York federal court’s ruling that permitted the Federal Trade Commission to serve the Indian defendants, operating under … Continue reading

Did Twitter violate Anti-Terrorism Act by providing ISIS accounts?

Photo of Caleb Segrest (US)By Caleb Segrest (US) on Posted in General, Litigation
On August 10, 2016, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, in Fields v. Twitter, Inc., dismissed the plaintiffs’ complaint against Twitter with leave to amend. The plaintiffs’ complaint arose out of the deaths of Lloyd Fields, Jr. and James Damon Creach, two United States government contractors who were working at … Continue reading

What’s In Your Terms of Service?

Photo of Daniel Daniele (CA)By Daniel Daniele (CA) on Posted in Litigation
Social media platforms often require users to agree to Terms of Service or Terms of Use (“TOS”) to use the platform. These contracts can be lengthy and many social media users may not read them in their entirety before agreeing and proceeding to use the platform. This can raise particular issues in contract law, especially … Continue reading

Discovery Challenges of Social Media

Photo of Caleb Segrest (US)By Caleb Segrest (US) on Posted in Litigation
Social media has created several complications with regard to the U.S. discovery process in litigation. Among these complications are issues relating to (i) seeking out and turning over vast amounts of social media information, and (ii) preserving inherently fleeting social media information.… Continue reading

Internet’s ‘Hide and Seek’ Battle Continues in Canada

Photo of Daniel Daniele (CA)By Daniel Daniele (CA) on Posted in Copyright, Litigation, Privacy
The anonymity of the Internet has posed many challenges to the protection of intellectual property rights. The sheer size of the population of online users and the millions of file-sharing programs and other social media outlets that exist have left IP rights holders struggling to protect their property and goodwill in the digital era. For … Continue reading
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