The Wall Street Journal is reporting about the plans of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who would
like to anchor a ship 12 miles off the San Francisco coast in order to skirt U.S. Immigration laws. They project that the ships could hold 1,000 people at a cost for a room roughly equivalent (if not cheaper) to an
Technology & Law
Oral Arguments In Brinker Restaurant Corp. v. Superior Court
What can I say, technology is awesome. The oral arguments in Brinker v. Superior Court that took place on November 8 are already on Youtube:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=IJBnSaUt0_M%3Frel%3D0
The Supreme Court has 90 days from oral argument to issue its decision.
Is The Jury Still Out On Social Media Background Checks?
Mat Honan at Gizmodo wrote recently about a new company that helps employers search applicant’s “internet background” to assist in the hiring process. As Mat rightly points out, much of the concern over this “new technology” is overblown, and as he puts it, "[e]mployers would have to be stupid not to Google job candidates." …
UFC’s Social Networking Policy – Something All Employers Should Consider
I like the UFC’s approach to social media, but is this a model a lot of employers could use in their workplace? Absolutely. Unless you find yourself with the few who are still wondering what Twitter is, it is obvious that social networking is here to stay and companies need to figure out a way…
New Law Makes It Illegal To Impersonate Others On Social Networking Sites
Among the seven hundred or so new laws that took effect on January 1, 2011 is SB 1411 that makes it a misdemeanor for anyone to impersonate another on the internet “for the purposes of harming, intimidating, threatening, or defrauding another person.” The bill, which was signed into law by Governor Schwarzenegger, adds section 528.5…
Waitress fired for Facebook post
This week the internet is buzzing about a waitress who was fired for making disparaging comments on Facebook about a customer. It was inevitable, and if employers have not realized it yet, this story should bring the point home that social networking is yet another issue employers need to take a proactive step in…
Understanding Privacy Settings For Facebook
Yes, you are still reading the California Employment Law Report and not a tech blog. But since social networking, privacy and how these issues are permeating the workplace, I wanted to pass this New York Times article along to readers that describes all of the different privacy settings in Facebook.
If you think employers are…
Self-imposed MCLE for lawyers: computers, Internet and the law
Daniel Schwartz at the Connecticut Employment Law Blog writes about whether or not employment lawyers who advise their clients on social networking policies need to use social networking. I’ve writing on this topic before, but as the Internet becomes more and more dominate in everyday life, Daniel prompted me to revisit the issue. 
While I…
Easier To Catch Liars
We are nearly at the point were everything we do is recorded. Think no one knows where you are? Wrong, your phone’s GPS can be used to track your location without you knowing about it.
Parties to lawsuits have not realized this new phenomenon either. In almost every case I have litigated in over the last…
“It didn’t happen if you didn’t write it down”
I came across an article recently by Design by Gravity (via Lifehacker) – Methods of Work: It Didn’t Happen If You Didn’t Write It Down – reminding designers and programmers to record their thoughts in some manner, or else lose it forever. The lesson does not apply just to designers and programmers, but also…