Privacy Law

Federal judges issue conflicting rulings on emergency abortions when health of mothers is at risk

Federal judges in Idaho and Texas have issued conflicting decisions on whether a federal law requiring stabilizing emergency care conflicts with abortion bans.

Aug 25, 2022 11:10 AM CDT

WikiLeaks founder’s lawyers allege CIA authorized spying on their visits

Lawyers for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange are suing the CIA and former CIA director Mike Pompeo for allegedly recording their conversations and copying data from their electronic devices.

Aug 16, 2022 11:19 AM CDT

2 top state courts issue conflicting rulings over abortion restrictions

The Montana Supreme Court on Aug. 9 upheld a lower court decision that temporarily blocked three separate laws that restrict abortion. Meanwhile, the Idaho Supreme Court declined to stop a near-total abortion ban Friday.

Aug 15, 2022 10:41 AM CDT

Mom is charged with aiding daughter’s illegal abortion after prosecution obtains Facebook messages

A Nebraska woman has been charged with performing or attempting an illegal abortion after prosecutors obtained Facebook messages indicating that she had obtained abortion pills for her daughter and then helped bury the fetus.

Aug 12, 2022 8:46 AM CDT

Federal judge tosses lawyer’s suit over cellphone border search

A federal judge in Texas has ruled against an immigration lawyer who contended that the government violated his constitutional rights when it seized his cellphone at the border.

Aug 9, 2022 12:19 PM CDT

New York is first state to require CLE course in cybersecurity

Lawyers in New York will have to take at least a one-hour cybersecurity course as part of their continuing legal education requirements beginning in July 2023.

Aug 8, 2022 9:51 AM CDT

Going Viral: Once unpopular, QR codes have taken off, thanks to the pandemic

When the pandemic hit, QR codes became very popular as people looked for a contact-free way to share information. Privacy advocates, however, see a darker side to QR codes. “Really sensitive information about you is being collected and monetized by the QR code-generation company,” says Nicole A. Ozer, technology and civil liberties director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California.

Aug 1, 2022 2:10 AM CDT

Sporting a new beard, Justice Alito defends abortion decision, remarks on ‘growing hostility to religion’

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito is getting some attention for a recent speech and a new look—a beard described as “a work in progress” at the Volokh Conspiracy blog.

Jul 29, 2022 10:53 AM CDT

Law firms aiding staffers to secure abortions in post-Dobbs world see possible risks and rewards

As America’s culture wars intensify, the post-Roe landscape is possibly an even hotter legal battlespace than any seen before. As some law firms moved to help employees with reproductive health aid, blowback was swift from politicians hostile to abortion rights, with some even threatening to disbar those firm’s lawyers.

Jul 26, 2022 11:12 AM CDT

South Carolina bill would ban internet information on abortions; tech companies may face competing laws

Technology companies could face a “disparate patchwork” of laws regulating abortion information in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade, according to the Washington Post.

Jul 25, 2022 3:24 PM CDT

Georgia can immediately enforce abortion law defining fetus as ‘natural person,’ 11th Circuit rules

A Georgia abortion law expanding the definition of a “natural person” to include a fetus or an embryo is not unconstitutionally vague, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

Jul 20, 2022 4:12 PM CDT

Lawyer’s name is scrubbed from BigLaw website after he joins abortion-aid warning to Sidley Austin

A lawmaker who joined a Texas legislative caucus warning Sidley Austin about aiding illegal abortions is no longer listed as of counsel at another BigLaw firm.

Jul 20, 2022 10:20 AM CDT

Google ordered to pay nearly $1M for discovery violations, including David Boies’ $1,950 hourly fee

A federal magistrate judge in California has ordered Google to pay more than $971,000 in attorney fees and costs for discovery violations in a lawsuit accusing the search engine company of privacy violations.

Jul 19, 2022 8:32 AM CDT

Ex-husband is allowed to represent embryo in wrongful death suit against abortion clinic

A judge in Arizona has allowed an ex-husband to serve as personal representative of an embryo in a wrongful death lawsuit that he filed against an abortion clinic and its doctors.

Jul 18, 2022 3:11 PM CDT

Marginalized communities could bear the brunt of post-Dobbs data surveillance

After the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe vs. Wade, many people have become concerned about protecting their data and covering their digital tracks. But according to some legal experts, people of color and marginalized groups will be most vulnerable to surveillance.

Jul 13, 2022 2:30 PM CDT