In Lindke v. Freed, the U.S. Supreme Court found that a civil rights violation might have occurred when the City Manager of Port Huron, Michigan deleted and blocked comments on his personal Facebook page. This depended on...more
BB&K’s New Law Guidance for a Well-Informed Start to 2023 -
In Part Six of our “In With the New” series, Best Best & Krieger LLP covers important new legislation related to environmental matters, housing and public...more
PublicCEO Article on Navigating Developing Challenges Involving Public Records, Social Media and More -
In today’s ever-changing municipal landscape, there are many challenges that can arise for city clerks and board...more
California's AB 992 Analyzed in PublicCEO by BB&K's HongDao Nguyen and Albert Maldonado -
Clicking the “like” button has become second nature.
Whether it’s a thumbs up, hug or sad face on Facebook, or a heart reaction...more
New California Law Addresses Prohibition on Serial Meetings on Social Media -
California public officials could run afoul of the Brown Act if they communicate with legislative members of the same body on social media...more
The First Amendment continues to evolve to ensure speakers remain protected.
This was recently substantiated by the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling in Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University,...more
The court concluded its opinion with an observation that at this time in history, “wide-open, robust debate” is the best assurance of good government.
The Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled last week that public...more
7/19/2019
/ Data Blocking ,
Donald Trump ,
Embedded Tweets ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Online Platforms ,
Political Speech ,
Public Employees ,
Public Forum ,
Public Officials ,
Risk Management ,
Social Media ,
Twitter
The line between free speech and privacy rights for public employees and elected officials has seemed murky — at best. However, we are finding some clarity in recently decided court cases. This Best Best & Krieger LLP webinar...more
The Federal Aviation Administration recently announced much-anticipated proposed changes to its rules for small unmanned aircraft systems, or drones, that weigh less than 55 pounds. ...more
2/21/2019
/ Airspace ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Drones ,
Emergency Response ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
New Rules ,
Public Safety ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems
Social media is the modern-day public square.
Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms have effectively harnessed technology to turn communication into an interactive dialogue — fundamentally shifting the way...more
A Public Records Act requester is not entitled to attorneys’ fees from a public agency when a third party intervenes to stop the agency from producing the requested records, a California appellate court recently ruled. Third...more
Although it may not feel like it, public employees and elected officials still maintain their rights to privacy and free speech, but is there a bright line? In this webinar, Best Best & Krieger LLP attorneys HongDao Nguyen...more
If a public official creates a public forum from his or her social media account — even if the account was established before taking office — the official cannot block people from the account in response to the person...more
Reversing a lower court, a California appellate court found that a newspaper could recover attorneys’ fees under the Private Attorney General Statute in a Public Records Act suit. The Second District Court of Appeal decision...more
In Pasadena Police Officers Association v. City of Pasadena, the Second District Court of Appeal made an interesting observation about the effect of the Public Records Act’s time requirement for a response to a PRA request...more
A California Court of Appeal upheld a decision to drastically reduce an attorney fee award request against the City of Pasadena to a newspaper in a Public Records Act litigation — a decision that should bring relief to public...more
When the decision in City of San Jose v. Superior Court was announced, many public agency employees and officials were relieved to read that the Court of Appeal agreed with the city: communications on public officials’...more
Part of JD Supra's series on innovation and the law. If a public official sends a text about the agency’s business from his or her personal phone on an account for which he or she foots the bill, is the text a public record?...more
Public Agencies are Free to Adopt Their Own Policies Regarding Access to Private Communications on Public Issues -
A California Court of Appeal ruled yesterday that public agencies are not required to disclose...more