This defense case involves the alleged wrongful termination of a teacher. The plaintiff, a teacher at a rural high school, engaged in a class project where she ‘friended’ a number of students from her personal Facebook. Though there was no explicit content in the messages directed to her students, other posts on her account included profane acronyms and mildly sexual personal photos. Additionally, a memo from the school’s administration prohibited email and digital communications with students from personal accounts. The school received word of the teacher’s interactions with the students and terminated her.

School Fires Teacher for Social Media Communication with Students

This case takes place in Rhode Island and involves the plaintiff, a web based social networking platform, suing the defendant, a computer software development company, for breach of contract. The plaintiff had contracted the defendant to develop and create the software platform on which their computer network would run, as it needed strict requirements to be compatible with the Virtual Basic, or Vb, programming language. The contract was for delivery of a product with certain features and functionality and included the stipulation that the defendant use his best efforts to track deficiencies within the program. The plaintiff in this case sought a website designer and software engineer to analyze the structure and architecture of the programming, and determine to what extent the defendant was at fault for the shortcomings of the coding. The program uses a database system, which communicates with the main program through another application. The main program uses Apache-Tomcat to run Java and other Jvt-related applications using another open framework. The main program then communicates with the front end through XML. The front end uses a JavaScript library as well as HTML5 and CSS3. It also uses another open framework for the visualizer. Additionally, it uses programs for crawling email and social networks and to facilitate trusted connections, manipulate spam filters, and facilitate social media optimization. The main problem in all of this programming, however, is the database. Ideally, this expert will be familiar with data management and the data storage software to quantify the costs involved from a web developmental standpoint.

Software Expert Witness Evaluates Faulty Code For Social Media Site

This case involves a buyer who was interested in purchasing 2 undeveloped lots owned by a seller. The parties’ attorneys began negotiating the terms of the sale through email messages.

The buyer’s attorney emailed the seller’s attorney and sent a “revised offer” with changes to reflect conversations they had previously had on a standard Skype-to-Skype consultation facilitated by soft switch technology. The revised offer was comprehensive as it contained an agreed upon purchase price of $475,000 and a firm closing date. The email message ended with the suggestion that both attorneys “work to have the final offer form finalized” in time for the buyer to sign it and get deposit checks to the seller the next day. The seller’s attorney emailed back the next day stating that they needed “a written approval letter from the bank” that day and then they could complete the sale. The seller’s attorney also included in the email message that they were “almost there” in completing the sale.

That same afternoon, the buyer’s attorney provided a commitment letter from the bank with standard conditions. Before the seller signed the offer, he recanted and refused to proceed with the sale. The buyer sued and sought a lis pendens to prevent the seller from conveying the litigated property to another buyer.

E-mail messages between real estate buyer and seller create binding agreement

This case involves an ongoing dispute between an employee and her direct supervisor. The employee had been her supervisor’s subordinate for 6 years and the two had developed a contentious working relationship. The supervisor secretly requested that an entry-level IT worker begin monitoring the subordinate employee’s online activity while in the office. Over the course of 9 months, the IT worker gathered screenshots and screen recordings of that employee’s computer activity and passed them onto the supervisor. Over 20,000 pieces of digital content were sent to the supervisor including personal emails. In one such personal email, the employee had corresponded with a physician regarding a private medical matter. The supervisor allegedly disseminated the private email to a third party resulting in a damaged reputation for the employee. The employee alleged that the Stored Communication Act was directly violated. An expert with experience in IT and human resources was sought to determine whether there was any wrongdoing on the part of the supervisor.

Supervisor Disseminates Employee’s Private Online Information Without Consent

This case involves a woman who was charged with filing false tax returns and identity theft and claimed she was not guilty. The case was based on seized emails which the government claimed came from the woman’s personal email account. However, the government did not have IP addresses connected to the woman. In order to connect the woman to the emails, the government relied on “self-identifying” information within the emails. The woman argued that any “self-identifying” information was the work of phishing. She further alleged someone pretended to be her in an effort to gain her information and incriminate her. An expert in computer forensics was sought to educate the jury as to the methods of tracing emails and explain phishing, including the ways people can pretend or mislead with emails.

Computer Forensics Expert Discusses Email Phishing Tactics

This case involves a business auto liability policy declaratory judgment action. A female senior executive employed by a bank was driving to a work-related event in her personal vehicle. Because the woman was running late to the event, she began speeding at 20 mph over the limit. She was also using her phone to respond to emails relating to the event whilst driving. The woman ultimately caused an accident, totaling her car as well as the car she hit. The subsequent action involved determining the coverage that would be provided based on the scope of coverage offered employees using their personal vehicles while on the business affairs of the employer. An expert in insurance claims was sought to determine whether the language of the business affairs of the insured bank could extend to an employee of the bank using her personal vehicle at the time of the accident.

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