Justia Law Blog

Class-Action Alleges Unsolicited PayPal Texts Violate Consumer Protection Law Updated: by

PayPal was hit with a class-action lawsuit today alleging that the company violated a federal communications law by sending consumers unsolicited text messages. The lawsuit charges PayPal with violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, a federal law designed to protect consumers from unwarranted, unsolicited phone communication from automatic telephone dialing…

FTC Sent Warning Letters Over These 6 Background Check Apps Updated: by

The Federal Trade Commission announced Monday that it warned six (6) mobile app "marketers" that their background screening products may violate the Fair Credit Reporting Act if the makers of the products had reason to believe the reports generated by these products were being used for employment screening, housing, credit,…

Writer’s Picks: The Stolen Valor Act, Sarah Palin email hacker, and more Updated: by

Here are some of last week's highlights from our Daily Opinion Summaries writers. US v. Strandhof, US Ct. App. 10th Cir., 1/27/12 The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Stolen Valor Act (18 U.S.C. 704(b)) which makes it illegal to falsely claim to have received a military award or…

FCC: Anti-Abortion Activist Can’t Run Super Bowl Sunday TV Ads Updated: by

The Federal Communications Commission ('FCC') ruled today that anti-abortion activist Randall Terry (inset, right) failed to show "that he is a legally qualified" presidential candidate entitled to "reasonable" broadcast TV access in Illinois. Even if he was, the FCC concluded, Chicago NBC affilate WMAQ did not act unreasonably when it…

Pre-Super Bowl IP Offensive: DOJ Charges One with Criminal Sports Broadcast Piracy, Seizes Counterfeit Merchandise Updated: by

In pre-Super Bowl style, prosecutors charged a Michigan man with criminal copyright violations for allegedly operating nine (9) websites chock full of pirated sports broadcast videos (read the complaint below). Separately, federal agents also seized a purported $4.8 million in knock-off Super Bowl merchandise imported into the U.S. The U.S.…

What I Learned From Facebook’s S-1 Registration Statement Updated: by

Today, Facebook, Inc. filed a Form S-1 Registration Statement [PDF] with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in preparation for its initial public offering. Here are some observations from reading this interesting filing. Billion with a B. Companies that manufacture and sell tangible products are easy to understand. For a…

Justia’s Top 10 Lists for January 2012 Updated: by

Here is a rundown of January's highest scoring lawyers on Justia Legal Answers, along with a look at which Justia Dockets legal filings and Facebook posts readers viewed the most. Justia Legal Answers’ Top 10 Legal Answerers for January 2012 Jeffrey Moore, 3050 points, 61 answers Brian D. Lerner, 1,395…

Can Gingrich Emerge a ‘Survivor’ in “Eye of the Tiger” Copyright Infringement Case? Updated: by

GOP candidate Newt Gingrich and his campaign were sued for copyright infringement in federal court yesterday for reportedly playing the band Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger" song at Gingrich campaign events, but without obtaining rights to do so (Read the lawsuit below). Plaintiff Rude Music, Inc. is a music publishing…