Tag Archives: social networking

The Perils of Social Media

Social Networking media like Facebook and Twitter can be fun and useful tools, but the pitfalls aren’t always obvious– particularly if you’re a lawyer.

If, as a lawyer, you discuss your wild weekend on Facebook, don’t ask the judge for a continuance because your father died. Your judge may be more tech-savvy than you think.

Judges need to be careful, too: When a Judge “friends” one of the lawyers in a child custody trial, he is disqualified from the case. A Public Reprimand is published by the Judicial Standards Commission on this matter. In Florida, judges and lawyers can’t be Facebook friends.

Be aware of the issue of Legal Ethics and Facebook – recently discussed by the Philadelphia Bar Association.

12 Social Media Ethics Issues for Lawyers

Library Highlights: Law & the Internet

Virtual Freedom: Net Neutrality and Free Speech in the Internet Age
Dawn C. Nunziato
KF4772 .N86 2009
From the Publisher: Communications giants like Google, Comcast, and AT&T enjoy increasingly unchecked control over speech. As providers of broadband access and Internet search engines, they can control online expression. Their online content restrictions – from obstructing e-mail to censoring cablecasts – are considered legal because of recent changes in free speech law. In this book, Dawn Nunziato criticizes recent changes in free speech law in which only the government need refrain from censoring speech, while companies are permitted to self-regulate. By enabling Internet providers to exercise control over content, the Supreme Court and the FCC have failed to protect the public’s right to access a broad diversity of content.

Nunziato argues that regulation is necessary to ensure the free flow of information and to render the First Amendment meaningful in the twenty-first century. This book offers an urgent call to action, recommending immediate steps to preserve our free speech rights online.

The Law of Virtual Worlds and Internet Social Networks
Andrew Sparrow
KD667.C65 S68 2010
From the Publisher: Virtual worlds are the latest manifestation of the internet’s inexorable appetite for development. Organisations of all kinds are enthusiastically pursuing the commercial opportunities offered by the growth of this phenomenon. But if you believe that there are no laws which govern internet social networks and virtual worlds this book will persuade you otherwise. There is law, and a good deal of it. Why would there not be?

As with many other aspects of the world wide web, this new medium is unregulated and offers many opportunities for companies to damage their reputation, run into a whole host of problems relating to intellectual property, trade marks and copyrights, and compromise the rights of individuals participating within the virtual environment. By reading The Law of Virtual Worlds and Internet Social Networks you will gain a good understanding of the legal issues which govern this expanding and fascinating world – are you ready for the leap from internet plaything to meaningful social and business tool? [this book] is an essential reference for advertising and media agencies; television broadcast producers; academic institutions including university law, knowledge and information departments. In fact, it has been written for anyone interested in virtual worlds and social networks whether commercially because you want to explore the possibilities such environments present, or for academic curiosity.

Internet Law in a Nutshell
Michael L. Rustad
KF390.5.C6 R87 2009
From the Publisher: The book begins with a review of the history, technology, and competing theories of the Internet that enables a deeper understanding of case law and statutory developments discussed in the substantive chapters. It covers the history of the Internet through the rapidly evolving Web 3.0, competing theories of Internet governance, cyber jurisdiction and enforcement of judgments, choice and conflicts of law, cybertorts, online contracting and licensing, the protection of online intellectual property assets, the protection of online privacy, criminal liability for Internet activity, and European Community directives such as the E-Commerce Directive, Brussels Regulation, and Rome I Regulation.

In Search of Jefferson’s Moose: Notes on the State of Cyberspace
David G. Post
K564.C6 P67 2009
From the Publisher: In 1787, Thomas Jefferson, then the American Minister to France, had the “complete skeleton, skin & horns” of an American moose shipped to him in Paris and mounted in the lobby of his residence as a symbol of the vast possibilities contained in the strange and largely unexplored New World. Taking a cue from Jefferson’s efforts, David Post, one of the nation’s leading Internet scholars, here presents a pithy, colorful exploration of the still mostly undiscovered territory of cyberspace–what it is, how it works, and how it should be governed.

What law should the Internet have, and who should make it? What are we to do, and how are we to think, about online filesharing and copyright law, about Internet pornography and free speech, about controlling spam, and online gambling, and cyberterrorism, and the use of anonymous remailers, or the practice of telemedicine, or the online collection and dissemination of personal information? How can they be controlled?

Should they be controlled? And by whom? Post presents the Jeffersonian ideal–small selfgoverning units, loosely linked together as peers in groups of larger and larger size–as a model for the Internet and for cyberspace community self-governance. Deftly drawing on Jefferson’s writings on the New World in Notes on the State of Virginia , Post draws out the many similarities (and differences) between the two terrains, vividly describing how the Internet actually functions from a technological, legal, and social perspective as he uniquely applies Jefferson’s views on natural history, law, and governance in the New World to illuminate the complexities of cyberspace.

E-Commerce and Internet Law: Treatise with Forms
Ian C. Ballon
KF390.5.C6 B35 2009
From the Publisher: The revised and updated edition of this comprehensive work provides you with a complete legal authority on e-commerce and Internet law, covering business-to-business and business-to-customer issues, regulatory issues, and emerging trends. It includes practice tips and forms and its unique organization facilitates finding quick answers to your questions. This valuable resource on Internet and ecommerce issues contains nearly 10,000 detailed footnotes, plus references to more than 100 unpublished court decisions, many of which are not available anywhere else.

Privacy and the Internet: Your Expectations and Rights under the Law
Revised and updated by Margaret C. Jasper
KF1263.C65 J38 2009
From the Publisher: The Internet is the most significant medium of both commercial and financial communications and transactions. It has become the nation’s primary vehicle for the exchange of news, mail, and general information. Unfortunately, these benefits often expose Internet users to serious privacy risks which may have catastrophic results. Thus, it is crucial that Internet users understand how to safely and securely “surf the net,” without exposing themselves to criminal activities which infringe on their privacy.

This almanac discusses some of the most important security methods, including the effective use of passwords, utilizing virus software, installing firewalls, understanding encryption technology, and being vigilant about the type of information one shares on the Internet. Internet identity theft is also addressed.

In addition, this fully revised publication outlines Internet privacy policies and applicable laws placed upon various entities designed to protect private information of Internet users. A discussion of online privacy protection for children, which encompasses the governing laws are included. Finally, this almanac sets forth the role of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in enforcing privacy rights, including a review of some of the major enforcement cases brought by the FTC. The Appendix provides resource directories, applicable statutes, and other pertinent information and data. The Glossary contains definitions of the terms used throughout the almanac.