City Put Municipal Judge Under Surveillance in Residency Probe, Found She Rarely Spent Night at Home

A Kansas City municipal judge owns a home within the city limits and is registered to vote there. However, Judge Elena Franco rarely spent the night at home, the city determined after hiring a private detective and putting her under 24-hour surveillance, reports the Kansas City Star. She has been…

Nov 4, 2011 3:21 PM CDT

Chemerinsky: Keeping Up with the Joneses—How Far Does the ‘Reasonable Expectation of Privacy’ Go?

One of the most difficult, and potentially most important cases of the U.S. Supreme Court term will be argued on Nov. 8. United States v. Jones involves the question of whether it is a search or seizure within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment when the police plant a GPS…

Nov 1, 2011 1:55 PM CDT

Sky-High Spy: With GPS Probing, the Zone of Privacy Is Getting Even Smaller

Nov 1, 2011 8:20 AM CDT

Read All Over: Two New Opinions Describe Need to Keep Email from the Wrong Hands

Nov 1, 2011 8:00 AM CDT

Top NY Court Strikes Rules Limiting Lawyer Access to Assisted-Living Facility Residents

Rules intended to protect residents of assisted living facilities from overreaching attorneys went too far in limiting lawyer access to their clients at these facilities, the top New York appeals court held yesterday. In a 5-2 ruling, the Court of Appeals said policies concerning attorneys drafted by the nonprofit New…

Oct 22, 2011 1:50 AM CDT

Around the Blawgosphere: Smartphones and Dumb Moves; Axiom, Clearspire Big Competition for Solos?

What Firms Compete Best with Solos? At My Shingle, Washington, D.C., solo Carolyn Elefant says that she knows where she stands when she’s competing with the Am Law 250 for corporate work. “I know that in most cases, what brings clients to my door to begin with is that I’m…

Oct 21, 2011 1:59 PM CDT

Actress Claims in $1M Suit that Website Used Credit Card Info to Reveal Her Age

An actress who wishes to remain anonymous has sued Amazon.com because its movie website revealed her age and her real Asian name. The actress filed suit under the name “Jane Doe” in federal court in Seattle, according to the New York Post and the Seattle Weekly blog the Daily Weekly.…

Oct 18, 2011 4:09 PM CDT

SC Officials to Investigate Defense Lawyer’s Claim That Deputy Secretly Taped Conversation

South Carolina officials have been asked to investigate a defense lawyer’s claim that a sheriff’s deputy secretly taped her conversation with a prosecutor in a double-murder case. Circuit Court Judge Michael Nettles made the request after a hearing Wednesday on Florence, S.C. Defense lawyer Rose Mary Parham is seeking a…

Oct 13, 2011 8:47 PM CDT

Judge Rules Against Teacher Who Says She Was Fired Over Facebook Photos

An Atlanta judge ruled against a former teacher who lost her job after an anonymous complaint was filed to the school district about photos posted on Facebook. Ashley Payne, who says she was forced to resign over pictures of her holding an alcoholic drink while on vacation in Europe, sued…

Oct 11, 2011 9:08 PM CDT

Lawyer Sues Facebook, Says Tracking Cookie Violates Wiretap Laws, Seeks Class Action Status

A lawyer and Facebook user has sued the social networking site in federal court in Kansas, contending that a tracking cookie violates wiretap laws. Lead plaintiff John Graham, a 42-year-old attorney in Leawood, Kan., also alleges in the suit that the cookie violates state consumer-protection law, reports the Associated Press.…

Oct 6, 2011 10:44 PM CDT

Open Secret: Cisco Site Shares Privacy Approach

Oct 1, 2011 7:40 AM CDT

2nd Circuit Splits on Wiretap Suit; Judge Claims Lawyers Have ‘Fantasy of Persecution’

A federal appeals court split 6-6 Wednesday on whether to grant en banc review of a decision allowing lawyers, journalists and human rights advocates to challenge a federal wiretap law. The split decision (PDF) by the New York City-based 2nd U.S. Circuit of Appeals sheds light on divisions in the…

Sep 22, 2011 4:30 PM CDT

Topix Gets About One Subpoena a Day for Email Addresses of Anonymous Commenters

The social media website Topix allows anonymous posters to comment, critique and kvetch. But their identities don’t always remain secret. Topix receives about one subpoena a day seeking the computer addresses of anonymous commenters, the New York Times reports. Sometimes the subpoenas are issued as part of police investigations; sometimes…

Sep 21, 2011 10:30 AM CDT

Federal Courts Announce Higher Pacer Fees, Policy to Discourage Sealing Civil Suits

The cost of Pacer documents will increase two cents a page under a new policy adopted by the Judicial Conference of the United States. The new fee is 10 cents a page, according to a press release, the Politico blog Under the Radar and The BLT: The Blog of Legal…

Sep 14, 2011 4:45 PM CDT

Posner Defends Privacy Against Incursions by ‘Snooping’ Reporters and Bloggers

In oral arguments on Tuesday, federal appeals Judge Richard Posner saw some valid reasons to uphold an Illinois law barring audio recordings of police officers. Posner spoke in an appeal by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. The law allows video recordings of police in…

Sep 14, 2011 1:49 PM CDT