Labor and Employment Law Program

Employers and attorneys have unprecedented access to information about the lifestyles and behaviors of prospective and current employees, clients, litigants, witnesses and jurors. Employees often use their employer supplied smart phones and e-mail system for both personal and business communication. What about union activity and Section 7 rights? Should employers make adverse employment decisions based on employee conduct in social media space? Join our speakers for an in-depth discussion of the legal and ethical issues related to accessing this information for personnel and litigation decisions. 

PANELISTS INCLUDE:

• Shanell Parrish-Brown, Esq., Vice President, Employment Counsel, MTV Networks
• Laura Sack, Esq., Vedder Price P.C.
• Laura Schnell, Esq., Eisenberg & Schnell LLP
• Gwynne A. Wilcox, Esq., Levy Ratner P.C.

WHEN
Friday, February 11, 2011

8:30 am – 11:00 am

WHERE
Cornell University ILR Conference Center
16 East 34th Street, 6th floor
New York, NY 10016

FEE
$95.00 (includes materials and continental breakfast)

CLE CREDIT
1.5 CLE – Professional Practice (Transitional and Non-Transitional)
0.5 CLE – Ethics

Co-sponsored by: VEDDER PRICE  

------MATERIALS------

• “Employers’ View of Employees’ Use and Abuse of Social Media: Monitoring, Disciplining and Hiring,” Powerpoint Presentation by Shanell Parrish-Brown and Laura Sack, Feb. 11, 2011
• "Union Organizing and Representing Members and Social Media,” Powerpoint Presentation by Gwynne A. Wilcox, Feb. 11, 2011.
• City of Ontario, California, v. Quon, 560 U.S. __ (2010).
• Carino v. Muenzen, N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. No. A-5491-08T1 (2010).
• Wilcox, Gwynne A. “Great Expectations: Employees and Privacy of Communications on Company-Provided Electronic Equipment.” Paper presented at the American Bar Association Section of Labor and Employment Law 4th Annual CLE Conference, Chicago, IL, Nov. 3-6, 2010.
• New York State Bar Association Committee on Professional Ethics, Opinion 843 (9/10/10) (Lawyer’s access to public pages of another party’s social networking site for the purpose of gathering information for a client in pending litigation).
• Wilcox, Gwynne A. “Social Media and the Workplace: Anticipating Legal Issues.” Paper presented at the American Bar Association Section of Labor and Employment Law Technology in the Practice & Workplace Committee Mid-Year Meeting, NYU School of Law, New York, NY, April 28-30, 2010.
• Complaint for Damages and Injunctive Relief, TEKsystems, Inc., v. Hammernick et al., D. Minn No. 10CV00819 (March 16, 2010).
• The Association of the Bar of the City of New York Committee on Professional and Judicial Ethics, Formal Opinion 2010-2 (2010) (Obtaining Evidence from Social Networking Sites). 
• Stengart v. Loving Care Agency, Inc., 408 N.J. Super. 54; A.2d 390 (2009).
• Pietrylo v. Hillstone Restaurant Group d/b/a Houston’s, No. 06-5754 (D.N.J. Sept 25, 2009).
  
• Pietrylo v. Hillstone Restaurant Group d/b/a Houston’s, No. 06-5754 (D.N.J. July 24, 2008).
  
• New York State Bar Association Committee on Professional Ethics, Opinion 749 (12/14/01) (Use of computer software to surreptitiously examine and trace e-mail and other electronic documents). 
• NYS Labor Law Article 7 General Provisions § 201-d. Discrimination against the engagement in certain activities.