The Spamhaus Project suffered a rare legal setback last month in Nebraska federal court where the court in DatabaseUSA.com LLC vs. The Spamhaus Project, No. 8:19-CV-423 (D. Neb. July 27, 2020) found that the plaintiff had been wrongfully listed on its Domain Block List (DBL). The DBL lists domains that Spamhaus determines “are used in…
California Assemblyman Ed Chau (D-Monterrey Park) has drawn a lot of attention this year. The former IBM and Unisys computer engineer turned lawyer was the lead sponsor of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CaCPA). He also was the author of AB 2546 a bill that would substantially rewrite California’s existing anti-spam law, which apparently was…
Sacramento Gone Wild California Passes Landmark Privacy Law Net Neutrality and Emails Bills Advance LISTEN VIA THESE CHANNELS LINK LINK LINK LINK LINK Laws, like sausages, cease to inspire respect in proportion as we know how they are made. John Godfrey Saxe We will attempt to cover the whirlwind of activity from the…
The Intellectual Property Law Section and the Internet and Privacy Law Committee of the Business Law Section of the California Lawyers Association have issued a joint letter opposing AB 2546 amending California’s existing commercial email law. The California Lawyers Association is a newly formed entity comprised of the various legal practice sections that formerly were…
Assemblyman Chau has released an amended version of AB 2546 (which amends California’s existing commercial email law) that reflects changes won during the hearing before the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee (a copy of which is below). The bill, whose primary proponent appears to be plaintiff’s lawyer Dan Balsam (who also would be the bill’s…
On Monday, the California Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development (“BP&ED”) Committee held a hearing and voted on AB 2546, Assemblyman’s Chau’s wish list for plaintiff’s lawyers. The Internet Law Center submitted its opposition to the bill and appeared at the hearing to argue against Assemblyman Chau and Dan Balsam, the bill’s principal proponent. We…
California’s 2005 anti-spam law, which is designed to address deceptive email practices, is one of the toughest in the country. This week the California Assembly likely will vote on amendments to the law that will seriously harm e-commerce companies and charitable organizations in California and beyond. Assemblyman Chau’s (D-San Gabriel Valley) AB 2546, was primarily…
When it comes to regulating commercial email, California has a checkered history at best. 2003 – California Almost Shuts Down Commercial Email In 2003, California almost shut down all commercial email in the United States when it passed the poorly drafted California Anti-Spam Act (“CASA”) banning the sending of unsolicited commercial email. I testified against…
Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) has always been akin to a local commuter train, as it slowly progresses despite frequent stops. The law, which was passed in December 2010, went through a regulatory maze and did not go into effect until 2014. CASL Overview CASL prohibits sending of commercial electronic messages without the recipient’s express consent,…
Cal Court of Appeal Affirms Dismissal of Spam Complaint Without Leave to Amend Yesterday, the California Court of Appeal (1st District) released its opinion In Dewitt v Footlocker (Cal Court of Appeal Case No A141847). The court upheld the trial court’s sustaining demurrers to the complaint without leave to amend. The trial court did not…
April 20, 2015 A Dozen Things in Tech You Need to Know Happy Patriot’s Day! Patriot’s Day commemorates that Battle of Lexington and Concord and the “shot heard ’round the world” that began the American Revolution. It is a holiday in Maine and Massachachusetts and celebrated by, among other things, the running of the Boston…
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission’s (CRTC’s) Chief Compliance and Enforcement Officer recently issued a Notice of Violation to Compu-Finder, which includes a penalty of $1.1 million, for breaking Canada’s anti-spam law. Compu-Finder has 30 days to submit written representations to the CRTC or pay the penalty. It also has the option of requesting an…
Dewitt v. Footlocker and 1Ink Briefing We were successful in winning a dismissal of a complaint by serial spam plaintiff Timothy Dewitt on behalf of our client 1ink.com in early 2014. The court also dismissed the complaint as to Defendant Footlocker. Dewitt has filed an appeal with the California Court of Appeal and below is…
Cyber Report 