A tristate area law firm opened a new practice group in April specifically for tackling issues related to social media, privacy and the Internet.
Daniel Schwartz, an attorney at Pullman & Comley L.L.C., said the group was formed due to the growing number of cases surrounding social media and how businesses disseminate information to the public.
“There are a billion people on Facebook. It is natural for corporations, particularly ones in Connecticut, to have issues that flow from it,” Schwartz said. “We see this ”” data privacy and social media ”” as an area that will continue to grow.”
Government agencies and the court system are just beginning to grapple with Internet issues, Schwartz said.
The U.S. Securities Exchange Commission recently set guidelines about financial disclosures over social media and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is considering the ramifications of advertising potentially risky drugs and medical devices in a 140-character message on Twitter.
Schwartz said he”™s seen a number of firms start similar practice groups across the nation, but noted that Pullman & Comley may be one of the first in Connecticut to open a practice group with an interdisciplinary team. The group includes attorneys from varying law backgrounds including labor and employment, litigation, technology and corporate law.
Schwartz is also the author of Connecticut Employment Law Blog, one of the most widely read law blogs in the country.
“We”™ve actually been doing this kind of work for some time, but the practice group is formalizing what we”™ve already been doing,” Schwartz said. “Now we have a group of individuals from a variety of different backgrounds and experiences who can address these issues, coordinate with each other and best serve our clients.”
The firm has offices in Bridgeport, Hartford, Stamford, Waterbury and White Plains, N.Y.
To prevent and protect against future lawsuits, Schwartz said it is important for business owners to develop social media policies and guidelines for their employees.
It”™s not as simple as putting up a firewall and blocking websites from employees”™ computers, he said. Employees should understand what kind of information is inappropriate to announce online, how their privacy settings work and how to protect against hacks and data breaches. Something as innocuous as losing the password to the company”™s Twitter account could be a major problem if handled poorly.
“The power of social media can be terrific and it can also be scary at the same time,” Schwartz said. “Taking time to think about what employees post and share typically leads to more good decisions being made.”
Schwartz said it was exciting to set up a new practice and helping clients solve their problems with they don”™t have the clearest solutions.
“This key area of law is still so new that we don”™t have a lot of court decisions defining the parameter,” Schwartz said. “For a lawyer to be able to help shape that is exciting. It”™s a very rewarding area for our practice.”
