New York highest court rules police can seize user Facebook activity News
New York highest court rules police can seize user Facebook activity

The New York Court of Appeals [official website] ruled [opinion, PDF] Tuesday that law-enforcement can seize private Facebook [corporate website] account information. The court ruled [NY Post report] that Facebook could not contest the warrants and therefore the court could not decide the matter. The court found that only users themselves have the right to challenge warrants in criminal proceedings. However, while being forced to comply with search warrants seeking access to private accounts, Facebook cannot warn users about the disclosure. The case is a result of the Manhattan DA [official website] seeking search warrants in 2013 for the accounts of people in connection with a disability-benefits fraud case. Due to the gag order, the court has stated the only remedy for Facebook users is to sue for invasion of privacy after the fact. Facebook has kept open the possibility of taking the case to the US Supreme Court arguing that the case addresses unresolved issues about online privacy.

Governments around the world have re-examined their data privacy laws in the wake of a myriad of data leaks, including the Edward Snowden [JURIST backgrounder] leaks. National governments around the world have attempted [JURIST op-ed] to gain control over data transferred within their borders. In March the US House approved [JURIST report] a measure that would update US privacy laws in regards to e-mails and cloud storage. In October 2015 the European Court of Justice ruled [JURIST report] that EU user data transferred to the US was not sufficiently protected. In June 2015 a court in The Hague struck down [JURIST report] a Dutch law that allowed the government to retain telephone and Internet data of Dutch citizens for up to 12 months in an effort to combat terrorism and organized crime.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Justice Department brings anit-trust action against AT&T

On November 20, 1974, the Department of Justice filed its final anti-trust suit against AT&T. United States v. AT&T was ultimately settled out of court with an agreement that the corporation would break up its monopoly on phone service throughout the country.

Nuremberg war crimes trials began

On November 20, 1945, the war crimes trials of Nazi World War II leaders began in the German city of Nuremberg. Review the Nuremberg Tribunal's Charter and the verdicts and sentences handed down on major war figures.

Winston Churchill born

On November 20, 1874, Sir Winston Churchill was born in Woodstock, England. He would go on to lead the United Kingdom as Prime Minister through World War II. Toward the end of the war, Churchill worked with US President Franklin D. Roosevelt to craft the treaties and accords that have defined the world since WWII. A 2002 poll by the BBC declared Churchill the Greatest Briton of all time.

New Jersey ratifies Bill of Rights

New Jersey ratified the Bill of Rights, a set of 10 fundamental amendments to the US Constitution, on November 20, 1789, becoming the first state to do so. The state also ratified an amendment on federal representation which ultimately failed. Additionally, New Jersey rejected an amendment on congressional salaries, which would eventually become the 27th Amendment more than 200 years later. Read the articles ratified by New Jersey.