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November 30, 2011

What is Internet Defamation of Character?

Welcome to Defamation Law Radio. Internet defamation of character is as easy to perpetuate as a blog post, Facebook update, rating submission, or a forum comment. Your online reputation is measured by the websites return as Google search results. Do you know what people are saying and writing about you?

This is Brian Hall, an internet lawyer with Traverse Legal, PLC, a law firm that specializing in the representation plaintiffs and defendants alike in internet defamation causes of action.  Today, I will be answering the question:  What is internet defamation of character? 

Internet defamation of character is just as it sounds; defamation that occurs online.  And online can be in many places.  It can be on a message board.  It can be on a website that somebody created to be able to post information about another person.  It can be on various websites such as Facebook, LinkedIn and other social media places.  Essentially, anywhere that you can post something online would be a spot where internet defamation could occur. 


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November 29, 2011

Digital Millennium Copyright Act Lawyer Discusses DMCA Takedown Notice Provisions

Welcome to Copyright Law Radio.  My name is Attorney Enrico Schaefer. Today, we’re going to be talking about the Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act (OCILLA), which is a provision in the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act, known as the DMCA, and how it affects OSP’s or online service providers, which includes ISP’s, web hosts, and the like.  So, what are we talking about here today?  We’re talking about claims of copyright infringement.  If you are a copyright owner and you see that your copyright protected material has been posted on a third party website, you need to understand what legal options you may have, not only against the person infringing your copyright, but in order to have those materials removed from the website so that further dissemination of your copyright-protected work does not occur. 


So, congress, back in 1998, anticipated the problem of copyright infringement on the internet and passed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the DMCA.  Part of those provisions in the DMCA included the Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act (OCILLA), which is essentially the safe harbor provision for OSP’s.  OSP’s are third party publisher of potentially copyright protected works and how those works get taken down off the internet is the subject of today’s show. 

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November 28, 2011

Website Privacy Policy Drafting Tips

Welcome to Internet Law Radio.  I am Attorney Enrico Schaefer and I specialize in internet law, we represent clients across the world on a variety of internet legal issues, things that arise on the web, and we handle clients from website operators on through to people who are interacting with websites.  Today, we’re talking about privacy policy drafting and what needs to be included in a privacy policy on a particular website, typically found in the terms of service (TOS) or terms of use (TOU) area of a website. 


Essentially, you want to think of a privacy policy for a website as legal document which not only protects the website owner, but also provides notice and clarity and transparency to the website visitors, to the people that come to that website, so that they can feel safe and secure about how their information, how their data is being used by the website operator.  So, essentially, a privacy policy is a statement that discloses to the users the way information is going to be gathered, the way information is going to be used, how client or customer data is going to be stored and variety of related issues. 

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November 23, 2011

What Are My Defenses to Copyright Infringement?

Welcome to Copyright Law Radio. We bring you the best in copyright news, legal advice and information. From copyright infringement claims and defenses to threat letter issues, DMCA takedown notice letters, copyright licensing, and legal analysis of the latest copyright law cases, we have a copyright attorney who can answer your copyright questions.

This is Brian Hall, a copyright attorney with Traverse Legal, PLC, a law firm that represents copyright registrants, copyright owners, and those dealing with copyright infringement claims throughout the United States.  Today, I will be answering the question:  What are my defenses to copyright infringement claim? 

So, to begin, you may be put on notice of a copyright infringement claim either by having received a cease and desist letter, sometimes known as a threat letter, or by being named a defendant in a copyright infringement lawsuit.  Regardless of how you became aware of the alleged copyright infringement, you need to, first, identify what defenses you have available.  A qualified and experienced copyright lawyer will be the best person that can advise you as to this.   However, what I’d like to do is provide you with some of the most common defenses that arise when copyright infringement is claimed.

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November 22, 2011

What Are My Defenses to a Trademark Infringement Claim?

Welcome to Trademark Law Radio, a top web resource on issues of trademark infringement, trademark licensing, trademark protection, and trademark registration.

This is Brian Hall, a trademark attorney with Traverse Legal, PLC, a law firm representing trademark infringement plaintiffs and defendants in the United States.  Today, I will be answering the question:  What Are My Defenses to a Trademark Infringement Claim? 

You will know if you are being subjected to a trademark infringement claim if one of several things occurs.  More likely than not, you will receive what’s known as a cease and desist letter, sometimes also referred to as a threat letter.  That letter will set forth the sender’s rights in a trademark, identify your unauthorized use, and also set forth why they believe that you are infringing their trademark.  It is at this junction that it is important for you to retain legal counsel, preferably a trademark infringement attorney, who can advise you as to the defenses you have available.  Your failure to respond to a threat letter may result in them jumping to a lawsuit.  And once a lawsuit is filed, you are a named defendant and will have to respond and answer a complaint setting forth why it is not trademark infringement.

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November 21, 2011

Internet Lawyer Tips For Dealing with Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act Claims

An Internet Lawyer can help you navigate the intricacies of the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA) on cybersquatting claims and defenses. 

The Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA) is a statute passed by the United States Congress in 1998 providing special trademark protection to domain names.  Most trademark infringement threat letters and lawsuits over domain name dispute issues involve claims of cybersquatting under the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act.  Alternatively, many trademark infringement claims and threat letters dealing with domain names are resolved under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP). 

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Is a Web Host Immune from Liability under the Communications Decency Act?

This is Brian Hall, an attorney with Traverse Legal, PLC, an internet law firm representing internet companies throughout the world.  Today, I will be answering the question:  Is a web host immune from liability under the Communications Decency Act?

So,  to start, the Communications Decency Act, sometimes referred to as the CDA, is a piece of legislation passed by congress in 1996.  It provides in the language of the Act itself that no provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.  What that means is that so long as the web host is merely providing the means by which someone can post content and display information to others on the internet, they will not be subject to liability in connection with claims related to, most importantly, defamation.

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November 17, 2011

Drafting a Privacy Policy for a Website

Welcome to Internet Law Radio.  My name is Attorney Enrico Schaefer.  I specialize in internet law.  Other attorneys and I at Traverse Legal understand technology, the internet, the web and we specialize in internet law issues.  Today, we’re going to be talking about privacy policies.  Every website needs a privacy policy, and we draft a lot of privacy policies for clients who are launching new websites or looking to audit their current website or upgrade their website in some way. 


Now, a lot of folks out there will simply go and cut and paste a third party privacy policy and put it onto their own website.  Well, this is a relatively common occurrence, it is really desolution to what could be a serious problem.   In order to effectively draft a privacy policy for your website, the first thing an internet law attorney is going to need to do is understand your business model.  There are a lot of variables that go into a well drafted privacy policy.  Let me just give you some examples so you can understand the types of issues that need to be addressed in your policy for your website. 

The first thing you need to understand is that a privacy policy is driven in several parts.  The first is that many states and federal governments, The United States, The UK, etc. have specific privacy requirements that you must comply with.  So, drafting an effective policy is a compliance issues first and foremost.
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November 14, 2011

Privacy Policy Violation Alleged: Lessons from Facebook

Perhaps no privacy policy draws more attention than the ever-changing privacy policy by Facebook.  Many times, it doesn't matter what your privacy policy says.  Because compliance is different by country, and sometimes by state, even a well drafted privacy policy can still come under attack.  As an internet lawyer, we draft form and customized privacy policies for website clients all the time.  Our attorneys regularly hear: "Can I just copy a privacy policy, terms of service or terms of use policy from some other website?" Think about your privacy policy, and your other website agreements, as important protection for your company from liability, violations of law and as part of your customer service model.  You should be paying special attentions to your privacy policy and other website agreements as they are integral to your business success.  As an attorney who regularly represents the small business interests, I appreciate the fact that new and start-up companies need to save on costs and fees.  You can always start with a version 1.0 privacy policy or other website agreement and grow into more sophisticated policies over time. 

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November 03, 2011

A Social Media Policy is Important from a Liability, Governance & Business Model Point of View

Welcome to Internet Law Radio. My name is Enrico Schaefer, and today we are speaking with Chris Boudreaux, and Chris runs an amazing blog called Socialmediagovernance.com.   He's an executive with Converseon, and he has got the number one database of social media policies on the web.   He's also an expert in social media policies and the governance side of corporations trying to implement social media within their operations.


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Events & Conferences:
  • International Trademark Association 2011, San Francisco, California
  • Cyber Law Summit 2011, Las Vegas, Nevada
  • Game Developers Conference 2011, San Francisco, California
  • DOMAINfest 2011, Santa Monica, California
Recent Attorney Speaking Engagements:
  • South By Southwest 2010 SXSW Interactive Conference, Austin, Texas
  • West LegalEdcenter Midwestern Law Firm Management, Chicago, Illinois
  • Internet Advertising under Part 255, Altitude Design Summit, Salt Lake City, Utah
  • Online Defamation and Reputation Management, News Talk 650 AM, The Cory Kolt Show, Canada Public Radio Saskatewan Canada
  • Alternative Fee Structures, Center for Competitive Management, Jersey City, New Jersey
  • FTC Part 255 Advertising Requirements, Mom 2.0 Conference, Houston, Texas
  • Webmaster Radio, Cybersquatting & Domain Monetization, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Notable Complex Litigation Cases Handled By Our Lawyers:
  • Trademark Infringement, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  • Cybersquatting Law, Trademark Law and Dilution Detroit, Michigan
  • Internet Defamation & Online Libel Indianapolis, Indiana
  • Trade Secret Theft, Chicago, Illinois
  • Cybersquatting Law, Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act Miami, Florida
  • Cybersquatting Law, Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act Eastern Dist. of Virginia, Alexandria
  • Stolen Domain Name, Orlando, Florida
  • Commercial Litigation, Tampa, Florida
  • Copyright Infringement and Cybersquatting Law, Grand Rapids, Michigan
  • Mass Tort Litigation, Los Angeles, California
  • Stolen Domain Name, Detroit, Michigan
  • Adwords Keyword Trademark Infringement, Los Angeles, California
  • Trademark Infringement & Unfair Competition, Boston, Massachusetts
  • Non-Compete Agreement and Trade Secret Theft, Detroit, Michigan
  • Mass Tort, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
  • Mass Tort, Tyler, Texas
  • Insurance Indemnity, New York
  • Copyright Infringement, Detroit, Michigan