Internet Law

Law firm can sue over alleged fake online reviews that toppled its top rating, appeals court says

A Houston law firm alleging that it was defamed by 99 fake three-star reviews on its Google business page can sue for defamation for 62 of those reviews, an Ohio appeals court has ruled.

Sep 19, 2024 2:37 PM CDT

Lawyer must face ethics charge alleging he tried to hire Israeli hackers to access judge’s emails

A California bar court judge has rejected a lawyer’s bid to dismiss an ethics charge alleging that he plotted to hire Israeli hackers to hack in to the email and phone accounts of a judge and a lawyer.

Sep 19, 2024 11:52 AM CDT

42 state AGs endorse federal plan to add warning labels on social media

A coalition of over 40 state attorneys general urged Congress on Tuesday to place labels on social media platforms warning of their potential risks to children, rallying substantial bipartisan support behind a proposal championed by U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy.

Sep 10, 2024 1:50 PM CDT

5th Circuit becomes ‘proving ground’ for aggressive arguments by conservatives

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at New Orleans has become "a proving ground for some of the most aggressive conservative arguments in American law,” according to the New York Times.

Sep 4, 2024 8:59 AM CDT

TikTok can be sued over ‘Blackout Challenge’ that led to death, 3rd Circuit says

A federal appeals court has ruled that a mother of a 10-year-old Pennsylvania girl who died after copying a “Blackout Challenge” that appeared on her TikTok “For You Page” can sue the social media company.

Sep 3, 2024 2:53 PM CDT

Judge who displayed Confederate-flag statue should be removed, judicial conduct commission says

A New York town justice who denigrated political candidates on Facebook and displayed a Confederate-flag statue should be removed from office, according to the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct.

Aug 27, 2024 8:45 AM CDT

Lawyer gets stayed suspension for fake blog comments

Updated: A Colorado lawyer has received a stayed 60-day suspension for posing as a judge and a former deputy district attorney in blog comments last year.

Aug 26, 2024 9:29 AM CDT

Judge reprimanded for false ‘elder abuse’ claim on Facebook in spat over guardianship case

An Ohio judge has received a public reprimand for inaccurately asserting on Facebook that an elderly woman was removed from her home because of its “deplorable conditions” and her son’s failure to take care of her.

Aug 22, 2024 8:43 AM CDT

Trademark lawyer is profiting from Harris-Walz foresight

A New York trademark lawyer considers himself “the best political cybersquatter ever.”

Aug 15, 2024 9:27 AM CDT

5th Circuit nixes ‘general, exploratory rummaging’ of location data to find suspects

A federal appeals court's decision Friday on the constitutionality of geofence warrants has “case-of-the-year importance,” according to a law professor's blog post.

Aug 13, 2024 10:58 AM CDT

Justice Department sues TikTok, alleging it broke child privacy law

The Justice Department on Friday sued TikTok and its China-based owner ByteDance, saying the popular video app had violated a children’s privacy law by collecting data on millions of Americans younger than 13.

Aug 2, 2024 3:20 PM CDT

DC Circuit rules for PETA in First Amendment challenge to agency’s social media comment filters

The National Institutes of Health violated the First Amendment when it used keyword filters that blocked Facebook and Instagram comments that criticized animal testing, a federal appeals court has ruled.

Jul 31, 2024 2:45 PM CDT

Lawyer thought he was working with feds when he lost retirement savings to scammers

A 76-year-old retired lawyer in Arlington, Virginia, lost about $740,000 in retirement savings to sophisticated scammers who led him to think that he was helping the federal government catch thieves trying to gain access to his retirement and bank accounts.

Jul 30, 2024 11:54 AM CDT

Former BigLaw partner settles defamation suit against social media influencer

A former Greenberg Traurig partner has reached a settlement with a social media influencer he accused of posting defamatory videos seeking to falsely depict the lawyer as an abusive husband and spouse.

Jul 8, 2024 1:22 PM CDT

Moons, Fire and Pigs: Emojis can be confusing in court

Sometimes an eggplant is just an eggplant, but in the emoji world, it’s usually not. But is sending someone an eggplant emoji or a winky face proof of sexual harassment? When does a gun emoji mean someone is threatening another person with death? Does a thumbs-up emoji mean acceptance of a contract? These are all questions presented in courtrooms across the country and the world.

Jul 2, 2024 3:06 PM CDT