The Best (and Worst!) of 2006
FindLawBy The FindLaw Editorial Staff
2006 is coming to a close, and it has been a topsy-turvy year, to say the least.
The world of Legal Technology has also had its share of ups and downs in 2006, with companies spying on their boards, the treasury department spying on money transfers, and the government spying on, well, everyone! With all the spying going on, data security was certainly on everyone's mind in 2006, and several key stories arose out of the inability of companies and government agencies to protect their customer and employee data. The new Federal Rules of Civil Procedure also added to the mix with new requirements for companies and other potential litigants to keep in mind as they generate gigabytes and gigabytes of information every day.
We've assembled some of the top issues that have appeared in the Legal Technology Center over the course of 2006, and we offer them up so you can relive the highs and lows that were 2006. Enjoy, and have a wonderful holiday season and a happy New Year!
Web Sites Not Deemed Liable For Content Posted By Others
Web site providers can take a deep breath - the California Supreme Court has ruled that they are not legally responsible for content posted by third-parties on their sites.
(read more)Open Source Software Survives Antitrust Challenge
Does giving something away violate the Sherman Act's prohibition on predatory pricing? Does encouraging a price of zero constitute price-fixing? No on both counts, according to a recent Seventh Circuit decision in an antitrust suit against companies distributing software under the GNU Public License (GPL).
(read more)30 Years of Public-Key Cryptography
Public-key cryptography has changed our society by allowing for the spread of secure digital communications. The technology turns 30 this year, and we look back at where it all began, as well as peer into the future of this ubiquitous security system.
(read more)Failing To Preserve Electronic Evidence Can Gut Your Case
If you want to succeed in litigation these days, it is imperative that relevant electronic data be preserved. The destruction of such data can lead to serious adverse evidentiary inferences, as illuminated by a very recent case.
(read more)Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional: a Revolution for Legal Document Production and Management
It is rare when a new piece of software becomes instantly indispensable for legal practitioners. The release of Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional on November 2 marked just such an occasion.
(read more)Ninth Circuit OKs Border Searches of Laptops
The Ninth Circuit, in a decision announced this summer, has approved forensic searches of laptop computers at the border, even when the laptop's owner spent no time outside the airport in the foreign country and was under no suspicion of possessing foreign contraband.
(read more)Key Trends in Software Licensing
On September 21, 2006 the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) and Fenwick & West LLP hosted a seminar on the key trends in software licensing. Speakers from many different areas of industry congregated to discuss their impressions of the current software market with a specific focus on licensing aspects.
(read more)Boardroom Hijinks May Lead to Serious Liability
Two days ago, on September 12, Hewlett-Packard's ("HP") non-executive Chair, Patricia Dunn, resigned -- amid news stories claiming she used subterfuge to gain access to the phone records of board members and journalists, in an effort to root out a suspected boardroom snitch.
(read more)9th Circuit Defends Digital Research Expenses
In a decision handed down on August 30 (Trs. of the Constr. Indus. & Laborers Health & Welfare Trust v. Redland Ins. Co.), a panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals awarded litigation expenses for computer-based legal research to plaintiffs in the case. This decision puts the 9th Circuit and others in conflict with the 8th Circuit, which could result in an eventual review of the issue by the U.S. Supreme Court.
(read more)Privacy and Search Engine Data: A Recent AOL Research Project Has Perilous Consequences for Subscribers
Some America Online (AOL) Internet service subscribers may be in for a nasty shock.
(read more)Wiretap Fallout: Suits Against Telecoms Gain New Life in California
After receiving mixed results in July, plaintiffs alleging that AT&T and other telecommunications companies violated their rights by helping the National Security Agency (NSA) monitor their phone calls recently got some good news in the form of a consolidation order from the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation.
(read more)IT Security Issues Discussed in Recent Federal Decision
Despite the Department of the Interior’s repeated failures to meet network security standards, a federal appeals court recently vacated an order requiring the agency to disconnect its computers from the internet and internal networks. The detailed and specific IT security aspects mentioned in the opinion are noteworthy in light of recent and widespread data security breaches at government and private organizations. The decision also provides guidance for any organization seeking to improve its network security.
(read more)The Recent Revelations About the NSA's Access to Our Phone Records: The Laws that Were Probably Broken, and the Likely Consequences
With the National Security Agency's warrantless wiretapping program still highly controversial, just last week, USA Today revealed that President Bush has authorized yet another secret surveillance program. Under this program, the NSA - apparently without the benefit of any court order -- has been compiling millions of Americans' phone records into a giant database.
(read more)The Treasury Department's Secret Monitoring of International Funds Transfers
In late June, the New York Times revealed that the Treasury Department and the CIA had been engaged in a secret surveillance program. Through the covert Terrorist Finance Tracking Program ("TFTP"), the Administration has reportedly monitored thousands of international funds transfers. The goal was to trace terrorist finances, in an effort to stop money from reaching terrorist groups.
(read more)Protecting Data On Government Laptops
In the past couple of months, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Trade Commission have grappled with laptops that have gone missing that contained large amounts of private data.
(read more)The Proposed Federal E-Discovery Rules: While Trying to Add Clarity, the Rules Still Leave Uncertainty
In recent lawsuits, the proverbial smoking gun may not be an interoffice memorandum found in a locked file cabinet. Instead, it may be an e-mail message stored and forgotten on someone's hard drive. This reality has significantly altered discovery - the process by which parties to a litigation request documents from each other; produce documents to each other; and serve and answer each other's interrogatories and requests for admission.
(read more)FCC Inconsistency Benefits Law Enforcement In VoIP/Broadband Decision
Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit addressed a controversial 2005 order of the Federal Communications Commission in American Council on Education v. FCC, a decision which denied a petition for review of an FCC ruling that providers of broadband Internet access and voice over Internet protocol ("VoIP") services are regulable as "telecommunications carriers" under the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act ("CALEA").
(read more)When Redaction Goes Wrong: PDF Follies Lead to Unintended Disclosures
In a motion filed on June 21, 2006, the U.S. Attorney's Office accidentally released information that it had sought to keep confidential through redaction. The mistakes that the U.S. Attorneys made - and the ways to avoid them - are important lessons for anyone who ever works with files in the popular Portable Document Format (PDFs.)
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