Insights

Comprehensive State Consumer Privacy Laws

Carolyn Wimbly Martin and Ella Sands

Passage of state-level comprehensive consumer privacy laws has picked up speed in the last twelve months, and the trend is likely to continue. As the state 2023-2024 legislative sessions end, a total of seventeen states have enacted their own omnibus privacy laws: California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, Iowa, Indiana, Tennessee, Montana, Texas, Oregon, Delaware, New […]

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Deepfakes, Rights of Publicity and Proposed Legislation

Carolyn Wimbly Martin and Isabel Jonson

Advancements in deepfake artificial intelligence (“AI”) are increasingly being used to swap faces from an image or video, manipulate facial expressions and synthesize faces or speech. However, these replicas of the voice, image or likeness of individuals raise growing concerns as to the patchwork of right-of-publicity laws and the need for a national framework to […]

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Crumbs of Data: How Internet Cookies Are Baked Into Your Online Experience

Carolyn Wimbly Martin and Sara Etemad-Moghadam

We’ve all heard about cookies and clicked through the banners and online pop-ups addressing the use of cookies, but their actual purpose and the rules that govern their use are not commonly understood either by website owners or their visitors. With the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”), the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”), the […]

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DOs and DON’Ts for Website Privacy Policies

It is easy to become lost in the quagmire of privacy obligations for your website. In the absence of a comprehensive federal privacy law in the United States, individual states are enacting their own privacy laws. For a while it was only California, but now many other states either have enacted laws or have pending […]

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Copyrightability of the Elements of Music Videos and the Challenges of Enforcement

Carolyn Wimbly Martin and Sara Etemad-Moghadam

On February 12, 2024, video game developer Epic Games, Inc. (“Epic”), and pop choreographer Kyle Hanagami (“Hanagami”) agreed to dismiss with prejudice a 2022 lawsuit accusing Epic of ripping off Hanagami’s dance moves for use in Epic’s popular video game “Fortnite.” The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California dismissed the lawsuit, finding […]

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A Case Study: George Carlin, Artificial Intelligence and the Right of Publicity

Carolyn Wimbly Martin, Sara Etemad-Moghadam and Ella Sands

In January 2024 Dudesy, an AI-assisted podcast, released a new hourlong special titled “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead,” featuring a version of the late comedian George Carlin (“Carlin”) allegedly generated by artificial intelligence (“AI”). Dudesy is a comedy podcast written, created and controlled by AI, and is hosted by “Mad TV” alum Will Sasso […]

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NFTs: Are They Securities?

Susan J. Lutzker, Carolyn Wimbly Martin and Sara Etemad-Moghadam

This is the second in a two-part series on the current status of NFTs. The first Insight in the series discusses the evolving, less sensational but more functional approach to the use of NFTs. In part two of the series we explore whether an NFT is a security and, if so, the additional scrutiny and […]

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NFTs: Where Are We Now?

Susan J. Lutzker, Carolyn Wimbly Martin and Sara Etemad-Moghadam

This is the first in a two-part series on the current status of NFTs. The second Insight in the series will discuss the issue of whether NFTs are securities subject U.S. securities laws. In 2021 Art Basel Miami Beach attracted more than 250 international galleries across 36 countries and territories and showcased artworks across all […]

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Options for Removing Objectionable Content on Social Media Platforms

Carolyn Wimbly Martin and Sara Etemad-Moghadam

In today’s environment, most of us are likely to have a photograph or video on social media we would rather not have everyone seeing. Maybe it’s an unflattering photograph, an embarrassing video, a post of their minor children or an old photo with an ex-flame. When someone shares a photo or video of an individual […]

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Add ‘Knowing Your Rights Regarding Health and Education Records’ to Your College Prep Checklist

Carolyn Wimbly Martin and Sara Etemad-Moghadam

As your child embarks on their college journey, it is essential to have conversations that go beyond choosing matching towels and bed sheets for their dorm room. Most students and their parents are unaware of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (“FERPA”). This Act safeguards student education records and regulates the sharing of personal […]

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