Commercial Law & Contracts › Privacy › Civil Remedies

Burr Alert: Blowing The Cap Off Statutory Damages Under The FCCPA?: An Analysis Of Kahmeyer v. Federal Credit Corporation

In Kahmeyer v. Federal Credit Corporation, the 13th Judicial Circuit in Hillsborough County, Florida released an opinion that has given new life to the argument that each violation of the Florida Consumer Collection Practices...more

Zip Code Requests Off-Limits in Massachusetts Credit Card Transactions

In a recent decision, Tyler v. Michaels Stores, Inc., the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that zip codes are “personal identification information” and that a merchant asking for that information during a credit card...more

Retailers Beware: Massachusetts Court Restricts Ability To Collect ZIP Codes At Point Of Sale

The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts recently held that collecting a consumer's ZIP code at the point of sale may violate Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 93, Section 105(a) (Section 105(a)), which restricts the...more

Retail Customers Obtain Unusually Favorable Settlement In Zip Code Collection Case

On January 11, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California approved a settlement between a retailer and a class of customers to resolve allegations that the retailer violated the California Song-Beverly...more

When Banks Are on the Hook for Cybertheft

This Wall Street Journal Article features Bernstein Shur Attorney Dan Mitchell. Banks typically are responsible for losses when personal accounts are hacked. But commercial clients that fall victim to cyber theft have...more

After Sanford company’s money stolen, court rules banks are responsible if hacked

This BDN Maine article features Bernstein Shur Attorney Dan Mitchell. SANFORD, Maine — A recent court ruling involving a Sanford construction company and its bank could have nationwide implications as attorneys and...more

Bank Agrees to Reimburse Hacking Victim $300K in Precedent-Setting Case

This Wired Magazine article features Bernstein Shur Attorney Dan Mitchell. In a case watched closely by banks and their commercial customers, a financial institution in Maine has agreed to reimburse a construction...more

Class Actions Adding to the Cost of Data Breaches

Big data yields big data breaches, and potentially produces large class sizes, making such lawsuits attractive to plaintiffs’ lawyers. Companies that store or process personal information face an increasing risk of class...more

Do You Follow Your Posted Online Terms and Conditions?

There are dozens of federal statues and regulations that govern consumer privacy. They regulate what data a company can collect and how you must protect it once you have it. One of the best ways to mess up in e-commerce is...more

Court Decision in Sony PlayStation Data Breach Case Places Burden on Plaintiffs to Allege Actual Damages

Class action plaintiffs asserting claims against Sony in connection with the 2011 Sony PlayStation Network (“PSN”) data breach face permanent dismissal of their claims unless they can allege actual losses resulting from the...more

Health Care Legal News - September 28, 2012 • Volume 2, Number 8

In This Issue: - THE DW HEALTHCARE TEAM IS GROWING: With the addition of six new healthcare attorneys, the DW Healthcare Team has expanded its expertise and its depth... - RECOVERY OF LOST PROFESSIONAL...more

Advertising Law -- July 27, 2012

In This Issue: Report: Google to Pay $22.5 Million Fine to FTC Over Privacy Violations; “Barefoot” Class Actions Run into Court; $9M Netflix Privacy Settlement Gets Preliminary Approval; NAD Cleans Up Vacuum Claims; and...more

EPIC Objects to Facebook Settlement, Cites Failure to Benefit Class Members (Letter two).

EPIC has asked a federal judge to reject a pending class action settlement concerning Facebook, stating that it does not actually benefit Facebook users. In one letter to the court, EPIC explained that the settlement does not...more

EPIC Objects to Facebook Settlement, Cites Failure to Benefit Class Members

EPIC has asked a federal judge to reject a pending class action settlement concerning Facebook, stating that it does not actually benefit Facebook users. In one letter to the court, EPIC explained that the settlement does not...more

"When Did You Last Think About Your Privacy Policy?" FTC and Class Action Plaintiffs Take Aim in Data Breach Actions

Almost daily, headlines announcing data breaches exposing consumer personal information to identity thieves are becoming more and more common. Recent regulatory and consumer class actions filed on the heels of these breaches...more

LinkedIn Password Theft Results in Class Action Lawsuit

Nearly as predictable as the sun coming up in the morning, the recent theft of 6.5 million LinkedIn user passwords has resulted in the filing of a class action lawsuit in a California federal court. In her complaint, a...more

Recent Credit Card Data Breach Once Again Demonstrates Need for Insurance Coverage

The recent data breach at Global Payments Inc., which has contracts to handle the processing of credit and debit card transactions, has again focused attention on the significant risk associated with storing or transmitting...more

May 2012: Class Action Litigation Update: Data Breach Class Actions—Courts Treat Theft Differently From Mere Loss

Any company that stores or processes consumers’ personal information is at risk of suffering a data breach — and, potentially, defending a class action lawsuit. Class actions based on data breaches are increasingly common and...more

I Know What You Watched Last Summer

The Northern District of California continues the series begun by the Seventh Circuit in Sterk v. Redbox Automated Retail LLC, against class actions brought under the federal Video Privacy Protection Act and seeking lucrative...more

Washington Federal Court Allows Data Privacy Case Against IMDb to Proceed

On March 28, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington held that actress Huong Hoang’s lawsuit against website IMDb.com pled sufficient facts to move forward on her breach of contract and Washington...more

California Supreme Court to Consider Whether State Law Prohibition On Collection of Personal Information Applies to Online...

The California Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments over whether a state law barring merchants from collecting personal information from consumers in connection with credit card purchases applies to online retailers....more

Advertising Law - January 12, 2012

In This Issue: Not a Dry Case – Judge Lifts Restrictions on Alcohol Advertising in Texas; Tostitos, SunChips, Tropicana Targets of New Suits; Literally True Claim May Still Convey False Message, NAD Cautions; Do Not Pass...more

New California Employment Laws in 2012

Now that the new year is upon us, it is important for employers to be aware of the numerous new California laws in the employment area that will impact their operations. Unless otherwise noted, the laws listed below are...more

The Electronic Privacy Information Center V. United States National Security Agency

Opening Brief For Appellant Electronic Privacy Information Center

EPIC Urges Appeals Court to Shed Light on Google-NSA Agreement EPIC filed the opening brief in EPIC v. NSA, No. 11-5233, challenging the National Security Agency’s response to EPIC's Freedom of Information Act request....more

Anderson v. Hannaford: Plaintiff Customers May Recover Mitigation Costs Of Data Breach

Plaintiff customers in litigation stemming from Hannaford Brothers, Co.'s 2007 data breach were handed a partial victory by the First Circuit on October 20th. The Court held that plaintiffs' claims for negligence and implied...more