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ARTICLE · 28 JUNE 2011

Facebook Posts Can Haunt You: Discoverability In Litigation

Duane Morris LLP
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Is it possible that information and photos placed on Facebook pages could come back to haunt parties in litigation?

United StatesMedia, Telecoms, IT, Entertainment
Eric Sinrod
Eric Sinrod
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Reprinted with permission from FindLaw.com

Is it possible that information and photos placed on Facebook pages could come back to haunt parties in litigation? Yes. Will that always be the case? No. Should people nevertheless be careful about what they post? Yes.

In this developing social media age, there has been a judicial willingness to compel the disclosure of Facebook material to the other side in litigation if the material could be inconsistent with the claims made in the case.

Assume, for example, that a plaintiff claimed that as a result of an injury caused by the defendant, she no longer can walk. However, assume also, that her Facebook photos after the injury showed her skiing down mountains, biking and jogging.

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