Julian Sanchez writes: The law normally advances by small and cautious steps—by the gradual extension of established precedents and rules to novel problems and fact patterns. Little wonder, then, that tricky questions of law often amount to conflicts between competing metaphors. Is a hard drive like a closed briefcase whose contents are all fair game for…
Category: Court
New Seventh Circuit Wiretap Cases
Andy Serwin of Foley & Larner discusses two Seventh Circuit decisions on wiretapping and ECPA. Both cases were previously mentioned on this site in recent weeks: U.S. v. Szymuszkiewicz and McCann v. Iroquois Memorial Hospital. The former was discussed by Orin Kerr on The Volokh Conspiracy, while the latter was reported by Courthouse News. For…
‘Cookies’ Cause Bitter Backlash
Jennifer Valentino-DeVries and Emily Steel: Tools that track users’ whereabouts on the Web are facing increased regulatory and public scrutiny and prompting a flurry of legal challenges. Since July, at least six suits have been filed in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against websites and companies that create advertising technology, accusing…
Beware the Computer Police State Policies
Dan Tynan writes: “Ok son, pull your laptop over to the side of the road and let me see your hard drive. Warrant? I don’t need no stinkin’ warrant. But the fact you asked for one indicates you’ve probably got something to hide, so I’m going to confiscate that machine in plain sight and hold…