Privacy Law

Yes, your technology is spying on you; what can be done about it?

As eager techies packed the Hyatt Regency Chicago for the third day of the ABA Techshow 2024, one ethics lawyer had a message that he wanted to make crystal clear: Technology may be your best friend, but it could simultaneously be your downfall.

Feb 16, 2024 11:43 AM CST

Ring camera app won’t share footage with law enforcement anymore

Ring, the video doorbell company, will no longer facilitate law enforcement requests for users’ footage, the company said Wednesday, shutting down a tool that critics have said threatens people’s privacy. The company had partnered with hundreds of law enforcement agencies across the country in recent years, allowing them to request…

Jan 29, 2024 12:45 PM CST

Could generative AI help break down language barriers plaguing the Indian justice system?

Updated: To overcome the language barriers in a region where the official language the courts use is English, Kishore Kommi, a police officer and a former data scientist, is making use of Jugalbandi, an open-source multilingual chatbot using generative artificial intelligence.

Jan 22, 2024 8:34 AM CST

Animal Legal Defense Fund fails to persuade 8th Circuit that ‘ag-gag’ laws violate First Amendment

A federal appeals court has upheld two “ag-gag” laws in Iowa in a First Amendment challenge by the Animal Legal Defense Fund and other animal welfare groups.

Jan 9, 2024 12:37 PM CST

Suspect has Fifth Amendment right to refuse police demand to disclose cellphone passcode, top state court rules

A suspect had a Fifth Amendment right to refuse to give police his cellphone passcode, the Utah Supreme Court has ruled. In an opinion citing that right, the court reversed the conviction of a man for kidnapping and assaulting his ex-girlfriend.

Dec 19, 2023 9:26 AM CST

Law firm press release didn’t violate patient confidentiality law, top Illinois court rules

A law firm press release describing its client’s suicide attempt in a hospital emergency room did not violate Illinois law on patient confidentiality, the Illinois Supreme Court has ruled.

Dec 4, 2023 2:27 PM CST

The convergence of e-discovery, compliance, data privacy and cybersecurity

Ari Kaplan recently spoke with Eric Robinson, the vice president of global advisory services and strategic client solutions at software company KLDiscovery.

Nov 20, 2023 1:38 PM CST

Biden’s executive order on AI has ‘extensive to-do list’ for Homeland Security

President Joe Biden issued an executive order on artificial intelligence this week that is intended to reduce security risks, protect privacy and prevent use of the technology to discriminate.

Nov 2, 2023 9:25 AM CDT

9th Circuit allows challenge to law banning abortions based on genetic abnormality

A federal appeals court ruled Monday that two reproductive health doctors have standing to challenge an abortion law that bans abortions conducted solely because of a genetic abnormality of a fetus.

Nov 1, 2023 8:52 AM CDT

Police shootings of dogs spark Fourth Amendment lawsuits, challenges to qualified immunity

An estimated 10,000 dogs are fatally shot by U.S. law enforcement officers each year, according to the Department of Justice. Some incidents result in lawsuits citing Fourth Amendment violations, including unreasonable search and seizure, and challenge an officer’s immunity. Some generate settlements of more than $1 million.

Oct 24, 2023 1:30 PM CDT

Standing by in case of ‘dystopian problems,’ court allows use of keyword search data to find suspects

The Colorado Supreme Court has refused to toss evidence obtained through a keyword search warrant that found people who had searched online for a specific address before a fatal arson at a home.

Oct 17, 2023 1:16 PM CDT

ABA’s AI task force will provide lawyers with practical tips, starting with Sept. 28 webinar

Through the next year, the ABA’s Task Force on the Law and Artificial Intelligence will provide practical information to help lawyers navigate and responsibly use AI, as well as recommendations and reports on several key issues.

Sep 19, 2023 8:30 AM CDT

Indiana AG faces ethics charges for these comments on doc who provided abortion to 10-year-old

Republican Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita is facing ethics charges for comments that he made about his investigation of an “abortion activist acting as a doctor” who provided an abortion to a 10-year-old girl.

Sep 18, 2023 12:14 PM CDT

Chicago law firm faces biometric privacy suit for allegedly storing legal secretary’s fingerprints

A former legal secretary at Mandell Menkes has filed a lawsuit against the Chicago law firm for allegedly scanning and storing her fingerprints in its time clock system.

Aug 23, 2023 10:28 AM CDT

Lawyer’s quest for warrant requirement for border cellphone searches rebuffed by 5th Circuit

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not violate a lawyer’s constitutional rights when it seized his phone as he entered the United States, sent it to a forensics lab to bypass his passcode, and obtained its data after using a “filter team” to protect privileged material, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

Aug 17, 2023 11:07 AM CDT