A recent case from the Northern District of California raises the importance of actively engaging with employees to coordinate the search for documents and electronically-stored information to comply with the employer’s discovery obligations. At the same time, the Court ruled that an employer cannot be compelled to produce business-related emails from the personal email accounts
EEOC Meeting: Social Media Discovery Chills The Exercising of Rights
The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently held a meeting to gather information about the growing use of social media and how it impacts the laws the EEOC enforces.
During the meeting, a panel representative from the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) explained that employers use different types of social media for
Healthcare Employer’s Termination Letter Provides Basis For Court to Allow Discovery of Patient Contact Information
Employers faced with the inevitable task of terminating an employee’s employment often inquire whether to provide the employee with written reasons for the termination; or, if they are required to provide an explanation of the termination, they ask what should be included in the explanation. Except in a limited number of states (and except where
Facebook Posts Not Discoverable
The Florida District Court of Appeal, Second District quashed an order requiring the mother of a vehicle accident victim to produce copies of certain postings on her Facebook account. 
In Root v. Balfour Beatty Constr., LLC, the plaintiff, Tonia Root (“plaintiff”) filed a negligence suit against the city and its contractors following an accident
Deletion of Facebook Page = Spoliation
A New Jersey District Court has sanctioned a personal injury plaintiff for spoliation following the plaintiff’s deletion of his Facebook account which defendants were trying to access.
The defendant’s discovery requests asked for documents or records of “wall posts, comments, status updates or personal information posted or made by plaintiff on Facebook and/or any social
“Friend” Request Lands Attorneys In Hot Water
Two New Jersey defense lawyers face attorney ethics charges in connection with the way they allegedly accessed Facebook. Regardless of how these charges are resolved, the facts in the case should serve as a reminder to attorneys to become more familiar with social media, and perhaps be more specific in the direction they give to
U.S. Bank Hit with Class Action Suit Alleging Data Breach Cover-Up
Paintball Punks filed a class action suit against U.S. Bank in Hennepin County, Minnesota. The case was subsequently removed on December 6, 2010, to the Minneapolis District Court. In the complaint, Paintball Punks alleges that between August and December 2009 it received 9 orders totaling approximately $11,000, which were fraudulently billed to U.S. Bank-issued cards. The amount
Employees Claiming Emotional Distress Must Produce Social Network (Facebook and MySpace) Information In Discovery
All information from plaintiffs’ social networking profiles and postings that relate to their general emotions, feelings, and mental states must be produced in discovery when they allege severe emotional trauma and harassment against their employer, a federal court in Indiana has ruled. (EEOC v. Simply Storage Management LLC, S.D. Ind., No. 1:09-cv-1223, discovery