The following non-exhaustive list of state, federal, and foreign statutes may apply to social media issues.

  • Anti-SLAPP (U.S. state law) – provides protection against Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (“SLAPP”). See our posts on anti-SLAPP.
  • Americans With Disabilities Act (“ADA”) – U.S. federal law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. See our posts on ADA.
  • Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (“CASL”) – deters damaging and deceptive forms of spam (unsolicited bulk messages) occurring in Canada. See our posts on CASL.
  • Canada’s Copyright Modernization Act – implements the rights and protections under the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Internet treaties and addresses various challenges and opportunities to copyright owners posed by the Internet and digital media. See our posts on the Copyright Modernization Act.
  • Communications Decency Act (“CDA”) – U.S. federal law that regulates indecency and obscenity on in cyberspace. Section 230 provides a safe harbor for third party providers who are not construed as publishers of their users’ content.  See our posts on the CDA.
  • Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”), 18 U.S.C. § 1030 et seq. – U.S. federal law that projects the common law tort of real property trespass into the virtual realm of computers. See our posts on CFAA.
  • Copyright Act (United States) – sets out exclusionary rights for works of authorship. See our posts on the Copyright Act.
  • Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) – U.S. federal law and Federal Trade Commission regulations that regulate online collection of personal information of persons under 13 years of age. See our posts on COPPA.
  • Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) – Part of the U.S. copyright law, it limits liability to service providers even if they have actual knowledge of infringing activity. See our posts on DMCA.
  • Electronic Communications Privacy Act (“ECPA”), 18 U.S.C. § 2511 – U.S. federal law that prohibits interception of “any wire, oral, or electronic communication. See our posts on ECPA.
  • Electronic Funds Transfer Act (“EFTA”) – U.S. federal law that establishes responsibilities of participants of electronic funds transfers and dictates rights and liabilities of consumers. See our posts on the EFT Act.
  • Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) – U.S. federal law that requires certain employers to provide employees with unpaid leave for qualified family and medical reasons. See our posts on the FMLA.
  • Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) Act, 15 U.S.C §§ 41-58 – authorizes the U.S. FTC to investigate and curb unfair trade policies. See our posts on the FTC Act.
  • Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1051 – U.S. federal law that provides protection for trademarks and service marks. See our posts on the Lanham Act.
  • National Labor Relations Act – U.S. federal law that guarantees rights of employees to participate and engage in concerted activity for better conditions in the workplace. See our posts on the National Labor Relations Act.
  • SPEECH Act of 2010, 28 U.S.C. §§ 4101-4105 – U.S. federal law that makes foreign libel judgments unenforceable in U.S. Courts, unless those judgments comply with the First Amendment. See our posts on the SPEECH Act.
  • Stored Communications Act (“SCA”) – Part of ECPA, it prohibits unauthorized access of stored wire and electronic communications and records that are intended to be private. See our posts on the SCA.
  • Patent Act – U.S. federal law provides patent holders with a temporary right to exclude. See our posts on patents in the social media space.
  • 18 U.S.C. § 875 – U.S. law that makes it a federal crime to transmit in interstate or foreign commerce a threat to kidnap or injure a person, or to threaten property or one’s reputation with an extortion component. See our posts on 18 U.S.C. § 875.