Tag archives: Social media

The risks of relying on social media income

Photo of Daniel Daniele (CA)By Daniel Daniele (CA) on Posted in General
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many of us to adjust our usual work-life balance. Rather than maintaining the strict division between home and office, individuals have adapted to a new hybrid lifestyle, combining all under one roof. This new lifestyle has afforded many people with additional free time that would otherwise be spent commuting to … Continue reading

(Virtual) house rules: Things to know for Houseparty hangouts

Photo of Kerri Gevers (SG)By Kerri Gevers (SG) on Posted in General
Houseparty, the group video chat app that allows users to interact in “rooms”, is unsurprisingly becoming one of the most popular social media platforms in the current global environment. Distinguishing features are: (i) the ability to move between chat sessions happening simultaneously in other rooms; and (ii) the ability to play party games while chatting, … 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 Activity Used as Evidence of Employees Violating Cell Phone Policy

Photo of Phil Di Tullio (US)By Phil Di Tullio (US) on Posted in Employment and labor, Social media policies
In an August 1, 2019 post titled “Without Proper Enforcement, Even the Strongest Social Media Policies May Not Protect Employers,” we discussed how enforcement of corporate social media policies was paramount to protecting employers from liability stemming from employee violations of that policy. That post discussed how employers must take care not only to formulate … 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

Monkeying around on social media could land you with a defamation suit

Photo of Caleb Segrest (US)By Caleb Segrest (US) on Posted in Defamation
As a wise person once said, truth often is stranger than fiction. The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth District of Texas (the “Appellate Court”) recently decided Hosseini v. Hansen, a bizarre case involving the intertwining of a tax preparation business, primate trainers and enthusiasts, and a defamation claim. Despite the unique factual circumstances, … Continue reading

New California laws may require review of social media policies

Photo of Phil Di Tullio (US)By Phil Di Tullio (US) on Posted in Employment and labor, Social media policies
The use of social media by employees is as fraught as it is widespread, and creates tremendous legal risk for the employer. Indeed, employers are wise to require adherence to a thorough policy regarding employee use of social media both inside and outside of work. The best policies will aim to sidestep potential legal landmines … Continue reading

Inappropriate employee social media activity as a defense against employment discrimination claims

By on Posted in Employment and labor
It seems inevitable in today’s digital world that employers will sometimes discover that an employee has posted inappropriate statements or other inappropriate content on social media. The employer must then decide how to respond. Although the desired level of discipline will vary depending on the severity of the content, some statements are so egregious that … Continue reading

Texas lawyers and social media

Photo of Andrea Shannon (US)By Andrea Shannon (US) on Posted in General
Texas lawyers are permitted to ask their lawyer friends on social media for help with legal questions on behalf of their clients, according to a recent opinion from the State Bar of Texas’ Professional Ethics Committee (“PEC”). The PEC is a committee appointed by the Texas Supreme Court that issues opinions on various ethics and … Continue reading

The new age of cyberbullying

Photo of Daniel Daniele (CA)By Daniel Daniele (CA) on Posted in General
There has been an increase in cyberbullying with the rise of social media. According to the Canadian government, “cyberbullying involves the use of communication technologies … to repeatedly intimidate or harass others”. Federal and provincial governments have effected legislative change to make harmful cyberbullying behaviours criminal or at least provide civil remedies for those harmed. … Continue reading

Social media activities and the appearance of bias

Photo of Joy Wang (US)By Joy Wang (US) on Posted in General
On June 21, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to decide the question of whether a district court judge is required to retroactively recuse himself when he allegedly follows the federal prosecutors on Twitter and, within hours after denying relief to the defendants, tweeted a link to an allegedly erroneous news article with a title … Continue reading

Trademarks, social media and lessons learned

Photo of Susan Ross (US)By Susan Ross (US) on Posted in Trademark
On June 14, 2018, a federal trial court in New York issued a decision relating to a restaurant owner’s claim that the restaurant manager was using the owner’s trademarks on social media in violation of the federal trademark law known as the Lanham Act. The trial court denied the owner’s claim, in a ruling that … Continue reading

Update: U.S. State Department to collect visa applicants’ social media information

Photo of Caleb Segrest (US)By Caleb Segrest (US) on Posted in General
In a previous post, we addressed efforts by the Department of Homeland Security to collect certain information relating to immigrants’ use of social media for record-keeping and tracking purposes. Subsequently, on March 30, 2018, the State Department released a notice of a proposed rule that would require the collection of social media information in connection … Continue reading

The #MeToo Movement: When Employees Take Their Complaints to Social Media

By on Posted in Employment and labor, Social media policies
As we are all aware, the news has been populated with stories concerning allegations of sexual harassment and misconduct, particularly in the entertainment and media industries as well as government institutions. These stories have contributed to the “#MeToo” movement, which originated on Twitter and other social media websites in late 2017 and has since become … Continue reading

Update: social media and the Anti-Terrorism Act

Photo of Caleb Segrest (US)By Caleb Segrest (US) on Posted in General
We have previously written about the United States District Court for the Northern District of California’s (the “District Court”) dismissal of the plaintiffs’ complaint in Fields v. Twitter, Inc. We are back to provide an update after the case made its way to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (the “Appellate … Continue reading
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