Tag: Legal

Advertising, Compliance, Content Development, Creative Content, Data, data privacy, Internet, Law, Legislation, Marketing, Media, Mobile, Monetizing Content, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, Social Media, Strategy, Technology

Amended California Do Not Track Disclosure Law Requires Websites Disclose Do Not Track Signal Response

At the end of August, the California passed an amendment to the California Online Privacy Protection Act that will require commercial websites and services that collect personal data to disclose how they respond to Do Not Track signals from Web browsers.

AB 370, as introduced by California Assemblyman Al Muratsuchi, requires a business that discloses a customer’s personal information to a third party for direct marketing purposes to provide the customer, within 30 days after the customer’s request, as specified, in writing or by e-mail the names and addresses of the recipients of that information and specified details regarding the information disclosed.

This bill, available here, would declare the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would regulate online behavioral tracking of consumers.
Advertising, Branding, Certification Marks, Content Development, Copyright, Creative Content, Design, Entertainment, Fashion, Fashion Design, Fashion Law, Infringement, Law, Litigation, Marketing, Media, Patent, Photography, Strategy, Trademarks

Owning Design: Protecting Original Design in an Age of Knock-Offs

A presentation on what goes into creating original designs and how these differ from copycats.

WHERE: Decoration & Design Building, J. Robert Scott Showroom, Suite 220

WHEN: Wednesday, October 2,2013 !2 p.m.

WHAT: From film to fashion, creative industries are taking steps to protect and promote original work. Designers and manufacturers need to know what steps they can take to protect their designs, their businesses, and their profits. The discussion will address issues related to how to protect original design (copyright & design patent) and the manufacturers (trademark, unfair competition).

WHO:

INTERIORS Magazine Editorial Director Michael Wollaeger

J. Robert Scott Founder Sally Sirkin Lewis

Designer Laura Kirar [Web Site]

Intellectual Property lawyer David Adler

Showroom reception to follow.

 

Download the full Fall Decoration & Design Building Market Brochure Here.

Law, Litigation, Patent

Bad Faith Not Required for Attorney Fees in Patent Disputes

Monolithic Power Sys., Inc. v. O2 Micro Int’l Ltd., Fed. Cir., No. 2012-1221, 8/13/13

On August 13, 2013 the Federal Circuit held that litigation misconduct and unprofessional behavior may be sufficient to meet the “exceptional case” standard under 35 U.S.C. §285 for an attorney fees award of $9 million.

Relying on Brooks Furniture Manufacturing, Inc. v. Dutailier International, Inc., 393 F.3d 1378 (Fed. Cir. 2005), the court clarified that “it is only absent litigation misconduct or misconduct in securing the patent that we require the finding of both ‘bad faith’ and ‘objectively baseless’ litigation to warrant sanctions under §285.” In this case, the district court did not err in awarding attorney fees for the entire litigation because Defendant’s “extensive misconduct was enough to comprise an abusive ‘pattern’ or a vexatious ‘strategy’ that was ‘pervasive’ enough to infect the entire litigation.”

Advertising, Branding, censorship, Cloud, cloud computing, Compliance, Computing, Content Development, Copyright, Creative Content, cybersecurity, Data, data privacy, Design, Entertainment, Entrepreneurs, Evidence, Facebook, Infringement, Internet, Law, Legislation, Litigation, Marketing, Media, Mobile, Privacy, Production, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, SaaS, Security, Small Business, Social Media, Start-ups, Strategy, Technology, Trade Secrets, Trademarks

Whose Social Media Account Is It Anyway?

As a result of the rapid shift in marketing from unilateral one-to-many communications, to the multilateral, many-to-many or many-to-one conversations enabled by Social Media, employees and employers are struggling to manage accounts that are used for both work and personal purposes.

This new phenomenon has benefits, but it also creates a number of legal challenges. For employees, it may result in greater efficiency, more opportunities for authentic customers engagement and the ability to stay on top of the most current grands and business issues. For employers, it presents opportunity to reap substantial benefits from lower communications and customer support costs. For in-house counsel, it raises a host of legal and practical issues with few easy solutions and significant liability and regulatory risks.

First, there are hardware issues. Smartphones, tablets and other personal electronics often have social networking capabilities built in. in addition, they contain contain both personal and business data. Because these devices are always on and always connected, they are more than just personal property. They have become essential business tools. For both sides of the workplace equation, employers and employees must understand where the privacy lines fall between personal versus work-related information.

Second, there are data issues. Employers must balance their needs to monitor employee usage, employees’ privacy concerns, and the risk of liability for theft or exposure of data if a device is lost or stolen, or from lack of proper safeguards on account usage. For in-house counsel tasked with drafting policies to address these risks, , Prior to implementation of any policy, the legal team needs to educate front line employees and management on reasonable expectations of privacy and security and the harms that the organization seeks to prevent.

Lastly, recent cases such as the Cristou v. Beatport litigation, highlight the struggle to define and control the beginning and end of employee social media accounts, ownership and protection of intellectual property and the post termination risks that arise from the absence of appropriate policies.

As we prepare to start a new year, the time is ripe to establish security and privacy policies governing creation, maintenance and use of employees’ social media accounts for work functions. In-house counsel must lead the charge to educate, inform and train employees about privacy, security and evidence-recovery implications associated with use of social media.

Authentication, Compliance, Computing, Criminal Law, Data, data privacy, Evidence, Facebook, Infringement, Internet, Law, Legislation, Litigation, Media, Networks, Platforms, Privacy, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, Security, Strategy, Technology

Evidentiary Authentication of Social Media Data

Although courts have called the Internet “one large catalyst for rumor, innuendo, and misinformation,” nevertheless, it provides large amounts of evidence that may be relevant to litigation matters. Increasingly, courts are facing presentation of, and challenges to, data preserved from various websites. According to a survey conducted by the X1ediscovery blog, there are over 320 published cases involving social media/web data in the first half of 2012.

Evidentiary authentication of web-based data, whether it’s Internet site data available through browsers, or social media data derived from APIs or user credentials, presents challenges. Given the growing importance of social media posts and data, businesses should be prepared to offer foundational evidence to authenticate any posts that are vital to a case.

Authentication of social media and web data is a relatively novel issue for many courts. Courts have been extremely strict in applying foundation requirements due to the ease of creating a profile or posting while masquerading as someone else. Therefore it is important to go beyond the surface of a social media profile or a post to provide the foundation necessary to authenticate what he evidence for use in court.

Regardless of the type of data, it must be authenticated in all cases. The authentication standard is found in Federal Rule of Evidence 901(a), “The requirement of authentication … is satisfied by evidence sufficient to support a finding that the matter in question is what its proponent claims.” United States v. Simpson, 152 F.3d 1241, 1249 (10th Cir. 1998).

The foundational requirement of authentication is satisfied by evidence sufficient to support a finding that the matter in question is what its proponent claims. See US v. Tank, 200 F. 3d 627, 630 (9th Circuit 2000) (citing Fed.R.Evid. 901(a)). This burden is met when “sufficient proof has been introduced so that a reasonable juror could find in favor of authenticity.” This burden was met where the producer of chat room web logs explained how he created the logs with his computer and stated that the printouts appeared to be accurate representations. Additionally, the government established the connection between the defendant and the chat room log printouts based on IP addresses.

See also, Perfect 10, Inc. v. Cybernet Ventures, Inc. (C.D.Cal.2002) 213 F.Supp.2d 1146, 1154, and Lorraine v. Markel American Insurance Company, 241 F.R.D. 534, 546 (D.Md. May 4, 2007) (citing Perfect 10, and referencing additional elements of “circumstantial indicia” for authentication of electronic evidence).

Clearly, there is an emerging trend in the use of social media and web data as evidence. As the use of this type of evidence increases, so too will the consistency and predictability of the foundational matters required by courts. Thus, businesses are well advised to include web collection and social media support in the investigation process so they are prepared to offer the necessary foundational evidence to authenticate any social media posts that may be vital to a case.

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Advertising, Cloud, Compliance, Computing, Content Development, Criminal Law, Data, data privacy, enterprise, Entrepreneurs, Facebook, Finance, FTC, Infringement, Internet, Legislation, Litigation, Marketing, Media, Patriot Act, Platforms, Privacy, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, Security, Social Media, Start-ups, Technology

Social Media Legal News Roundup

1. Content & Marketing

MutualMind Signs Agreement With LexisNexis to Offer Advanced Social Media
MarketWatch (press release)

PRNewswire via COMTEX/ — MutualMind, an award-winning social media technology developer based in Dallas, Texas, announced an agreement today with LexisNexis, a leading provider of legal content and technology solutions.

Facebook: Should Law Firms Bother?
Business 2 Community

While consumer brands have embraced Facebook as a key tool in building deeper customer engagement, the biggest social network largely remains terra incognita in the legal world. The sector has certainly harnessed professional networking sites.

2. International

Bahrain may act against social media abuse
Trade Arabia

Legal action could be taken against people in Bahrain, who incite violence and spread sectarianism on social media, said a top official. The initiative comes as a new code of honour for social media users is set to be launched by the Bahrain Bloc.

3. Law Enforcement

Infographic: How police investigators are using social media
Police News

An overwhelming majority of investigators using social media for investigative purposes are “self taught,” according to a new survey of 1200 Federal, state, and local law enforcement professionals.

Social media for investigators: Why Police departments should invest in training
Police News

That’s but one of the many conclusions found in a comprehensive new survey — conducted in a partnership between PoliceOne and LexisNexis Risk Solutions — focused on the impact of social media on law enforcement in criminal investigations. Among the …

4. Employees & Workplace

What your social media profile is telling future employers? (Take our poll)
Plain Dealer

The State of Maryland already has passed a law forbidding employers from asking job candidates for their passwords to Facebook and other social media sites, and California is considering a similar law. 01fgSCREEN2.jpg View full size · The Society for …

Social Media in the Workplace – July 2012
JD Supra (press release)

With an understanding of some of the relevant issues, employers can implement meaningful and reasonable policies and guidelines for employees and respond appropriately and legally to social media issues that arise. Below are a few of the discrete issues …

5. Financial Services

Quest IRA, Inc. Develops New Interactive Website & Social Media Campaign
Equities.com

The trick for us is trying to provide legally correct information, in such a way that is easy to understand, to the American public so that investors truly understand their options with retirement savings.” “Internet, the online experience and social media are the 21st Century.”

The New Social Metrics
Bank Technology News

Below are methodologies and metrics for determining the ROI of these specific social media use cases. The metrics roll up to three major categories of benefits: revenue impact, operational efficiencies, and legal and compliance risk avoidance.

David M. Adler, Esq. is an attorney, author, educator, entrepreneur and partner with Leavens, Strand, Glover & Adler, LLC, a boutique law firm in Chicago, Illinois created with a specific mission: provide businesses with a competitive advantage by enabling them to leverage their intangible assets and creative content in order to drive innovation and increase overall business value.

We meet this challenge by providing legal counsel on issues related to creation, protection and commercialization of intangible assets, our comprehensive understating of the relevant law, our team of seasoned professionals and our client service philosophy.

Advertising, censorship, Cloud, Compliance, Copyright, Criminal Law, Data, data privacy, Infringement, Internet, Legislation, Litigation, Marketing, Media, Mobile, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, Security, Social Media, Technology

Social Media, Technology, Privacy, Security & TheLaw

REGULATORY COMPLIANCE
17a-4 llc Provides Free Social Media Capture Service
Virtual-Strategy Magazine

By using a hosted version of 17a-4’s DataParser for Social Media schools, financial institutions, government agencies and other regulated institutions can now avail themselves of this free option to capture social media public profiles and other web content into their email archive. (PRWEB) July 24, 2012 … Most regulated institutions have archival systems in place to support the monitoring of textual content, the retention of the data, and the facilities to run legal holds and e-Discovery productions.

SOCIAL MEDIA E-DISCOVERY
Personal Injury Attorney Social Media Marketing Program Offered by Social Media

July 22, 2012 – Social media agency Maximize Social Media LLC announced its social media marketing program today for personal injury attorneys, providing needed support to law firms nationwide.

Mid-Year Report: Legal Cases Involving Social Media Rapidly
As part of our ongoing effort to monitor legal developments concerning social media evidence, we again searched online legal databases of state and federal agencies.

HOT TOPICS IN AUSTRALIAN SOCIAL MEDIA & THE LAW
Get a new perspective on social media
Dynamic Business

Join us after work on 1 August at the Vibe Hotel in Sydney’s Milsons Point to hear from super connector Iggy Pintado, Switched On Media’s head of social media Hannah Law, and Amelia Zaina, director of Small Business Services at American Express.

YOUTH LEADERSHIP IN SOCIAL MEDIA
The So-Called Arrogance of Gen Y Social Media Managers
Business Insider

So if she had just toned it down a bit, perhaps suggesting that younger people shouldn’t be ruled out for their youth, or that age and experience are different qualifiers in the context of social media, I might actually agree with her. What I believe, firmly, is that the 25-year-old should not be excluded from leadership.

SOCIAL MEDIA USE BY LAW ENFORCEMENT
LAwS Communications Announces ConnectedCOPS Awards Finalists
PR Web (press release)

Quote start The ConnectedCOPS Awards were created with the intent of recognizing the great work being done with social media in six categories, by individual sworn officers and law enforcement agencies.

Officer’s Facebook post sparks uproar
Detroit Free Press

A 2011 survey of 800 law-enforcement agencies conducted by the International Association of Chiefs of Police found that 88 percent of the agencies used social media, mostly for investigations. Almost half of those agencies have a social media policy.

Role of Social Media in Law Enforcement Significant – LexisNexis

LexisNexis® Risk Solutions today announced the results of a comprehensive survey focused on the impact of social media on law enforcement.

SOCIAL MEDIA AND CYBERSECURITY
Workplace Diversity, Social Media Implications, Cybersecurity
CHICAGO, July 19, 2012 — Ensuring a diverse and inclusive workplace, the implications of social media on law practice and privacy, cybersecurity, and access.

Advertising, Chicago, Cloud, Computing, Content Development, Copyright, Creative Content, Criminal Law, Data, data privacy, Design, Entertainment, Entrepreneurs, Facebook, Finance, FTC, Infringement, Internet, Legislation, Litigation, Marketing, Media, Mobile, Patriot Act, Privacy, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, Security, Small Business, Social Media, Technology, Video, YouTube

World Social Media Legal News Roundup

Newsmakers Q&A | Law slow to address workers’ social-media privacy
Columbus Dispatch

Colorado shooting: Public calls on Christian Bale to swoop in
Los Angeles Times

July 21, 2012, 12:04 p.m.. People are calling upon the caped crusader in the wake of the Colorado theater shooting with the 21st century bat signal: social media.

Afghan social media war steps up with new campaign
Reuters UK

And with the government mulling a media law to tighten its grip over the fledgling but lively Afghan press corps, Nai hoped social media could help safeguard political and social freedoms, as occurred during the wave of uprisings across the Middle East.

A social media win on merger
Philadelphia Inquirer

It’s a bracing lesson, on a local stage, in the power of social media to create community around an issue and ratchet up pressure on key players – in this case, the members of the Abington board and its president and CEO, Laurence Merlis. “It’s amazing to me just how fast word spread,” …. A community-conscious and activist community, with a high concentration of concerned, committed people who work in industries such as law, medicine, public relations, and journalism.

Valley reacts via social media regarding Colorado shooting
KGBT-TV

Once new information began streaming in about the shooting, over 100 viewers began responding to the Action 4 News Facebook page and Twitter feed. As the day progressed, over 500 comments came into valleycentral.com andAction 4 social media

Media Wise Parents to the rescue
Windsor This Week
Media Wise Parents helps parents, educators and churches become more aware with social media and the internet. Tweet · Bookmark and … It’s certainly in my background with law and marketing, it’s always something that interests me.

We Want To Hear From You: Take This Two-Minute Social Media Survey
Business Insider

This Is The Gun Used In The Colorado Shooting That Everyone Can’t Believe Is Actually Legal

In Focus: Social Media & Law Enforcement

Busted! Police Turn to Social Media to Fight Crime
CNBC.com (blog)

Law enforcement is taking to social media because criminals are changing their behavior and using social media to facilitate crime. In response, law enforcement officials are using it to track down criminals and as a predictive policing tool, said Haywood.

Role of Social Media in Law Enforcement Significant and Growing
Business Wire (press release)

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–LexisNexis® Risk Solutions today announced the results of a comprehensive survey focused on the impact of social media on law enforcement in criminal investigations.

Police Make Wide Use Of Social Tools
InformationWeek (blog)

The survey, of more than 1200 law enforcement professionals with federal, state, and local agencies, found that 83% of the respondents are using social media, particularly Facebook and YouTube, to further their investigations.

Crime Busters Embrace Social Media
BusinessNewsDaily

It’s not just prospective customers, partners or employers who may be scanning the social media landscape to glean information about you and your organization. The long arm of the law has joined the party as well, a new survey shows.

How Law Enforcement Is Using Social Media (Infographic)
Law enforcement officials are using social media to solve crimes and will continue to do so in greater numbers. In an online survey conducted by LexisNexis Risk Solutions, four out of five law enforcement officials used social media.

Advertising, Branding, censorship, Chicago, Cloud, cloud computing, Compliance, Computing, Content Development, Copyright, Creative Content, Criminal Law, Data, data privacy, Design, Entertainment, Entrepreneurs, Facebook, Finance, FTC, Infringement, Internet, Legislation, Litigation, Marketing, Media, Mobile, Monetizing Content, Networks, Photography, Platforms, Privacy, Production, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, Security, Small Business, Social Media, Start-ups, Technology, Trademarks, Video, YouTube

Social Media Legal News Roundup

Into the data jungle – in association with Huron Legal
The Lawyer
Technological developments such as cloud computing, social networking and mobile apps mean EU law is no longer fit for purpose. The EU claims current laws often conflict and cost businesses a total of nearly £2bn a year.

Saudi Arabia considers law against insulting Islam
Bangladesh News 24 hours
JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia, July 16 (bdnews24.com/Reuters) – Saudi Arabia is studying new regulations to criminalise insulting Islam, including in social media, and the law could carry heavy penalties, a Saudi paper said on Sunday.

Mind the missteps in online job dance
Lawyers Weekly
With some background check firms specializing in social media searches (U.S.-based Social Intelligence Corp. for one), how do third-party recruiters use social media when screening or finding clients for law firms in Canada?

Saudi Arabia looking to criminalize Islam insults on social media
Bikya Masr
DUBAI: The Saudi Arabia government is looking to ensure users on social media networking sites do not insult Islam or the Prophet Mohamed, al-Watan newspaper reported on Sunday, citing officials who said a new law could bring “heavy” penalties.

Watching the detectives: the case for restricting access to your social media data
Delimiter
That debate tells us something about how Australians and the media conceptualise privacy and business-government relationships in a world where mobile phones and social network services such as Facebook are ubiquitous.

10 Tactics for Integrating Photographs into Content Marketing
Business 2 Community
Acquire digital rights for images. Remember when using images, especially photographs, your legal team is your best friend. Ensure that you’ve got the right to use the photos by incorporating outtakes and additional shots for social media.

Syracuse Neighborhood Watch plans to increase social media outreach
CNYcentral.com
New program coordinator plans more email, social media contact. … CNY Biz Central – Legal. Helpful advice about finding the right attorney for your legal needs. CNY Biz Central. Get information from our team.

Reasonable Expectations of Privacy in the Digital Age
Mondaq News Alerts (registration)
In this digital age of smart phones, global positioning systems, cloud computing, and social networking, determining what constitutes private information and what lengths our legal system will go to protect it is increasingly challenging.

Sale Of Digg Reminder Of Potential Risks To Facebook And Other Social Media …
Seeking Alpha
In 2011, social media watchers may recall reading in Bloomberg that Myspace, which had been purchased by News Corporation (NWS) for $580 million in 2005 had reportedly been sold for just $35 million to private investors, including Justin Timberlake. In …

Your Social Media Tweeting & Posting Legal Rights. TV … – YouTube
Find out how legally liable you are for your Twitter Tweets and Facebook postings.

Learn more about me here: www.ecommerceattorney.com and follow me here

Advertising, Branding, censorship, Chicago, Cloud, cloud computing, Compliance, Computing, Content Development, Copyright, Creative Content, Data, data privacy, Design, enterprise, Entertainment, Entrepreneurs, Facebook, Finance, FTC, Infringement, Internet, Legislation, Litigation, Marketing, Media, Mobile, Monetizing Content, Networks, Platforms, Privacy, Production, Regulation, SaaS, Security, Small Business, Social Media, Start-ups, Technology, Trademarks

World Social Media Legal News Roundup

Law professor says social media can pose legal problems in Courtroom
Winnipeg Free Press
SASKATOON – The dean of law at the University of Saskatchewan says using social media can have negative consequences in the Courtroom – Business – Winnipeg Free Press.

Eight Ways Your Employee Social-Media Policy May Violate Federal law
AdAge.com (blog)
All employees have certain rights under federal law that social-media policies can’t restrict.

New Law to Force Identification of Trolls Set to be Unveiled
Technorati
Home / Social Media / Articles / New Law to Force Identification of Troll. … is behind the attacks on them online without having to resort to expensive legal action.

A blue wave of change Cleveland County law enforcers join move toward social media alerts
Norman Transcript
Lauri Stevens, a social media strategist at LAwS Communications, a Boston-area company, said law enforcement agencies nationwide are beginning to embrace social media.

Social media helped, hurt in hunt for suspect in triple shooting
Washington Post
Social media at times was a help, other times a hindrance in the search and eventual arrest of a suspect in the triple fatal shooting at an Alabama apartment complex.

Use social media, but use it responsibly, UAE conference hears
gulfnews.com
He said, “We do not monitor social media networks. People have the freedom to speak within the legal framework. There is no law specifically for twitter, but …

Police: Street gangs embrace social media, too
Kansas.com
Beard gave a presentation on gangs, the Internet and social media at last week’s Midwest Law Enforcement Conference on Gangs and Drugs, held in Wichita.

And…don’t forget to check out my presentation on the Law & Social Data panel at #TechWeek Chicago 2012.

The past few years have witnessed an explosion of legal and regulatory activity involving social and other new media. This session will examine several key areas, including copyright, trademark and related intellectual property concerns; defamation, obscenity and related liability; false advertising and marketing restrictions; gaming; data privacy issues presented by social media; and impacts of social media on employees and the workplace. Attendees will learn how to identify legal risks and issues before they become full-scale emergencies and how to develop appropriate policies and guidelines covering social media activity.

If you can’t make it, check out the Slideshare presentation here.