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No Privacy For Home Computer
An insurance services company bought two computers for use by Robert, one of its employees. One computer was used at the office, and one was used exclusively at home. Robert signed a policy statement in which he agreed that he would use the computers for business purposes only and not for various inappropriate purposes, including accessing obscene material. He also consented to having his computer use monitored “as needed” by employer personnel and agreed that his communications by computer were not private.
When Robert’s employer determined that he had used the home computer to view sexually explicit material, it fired him, despite Robert’s protests that he had not intentionally accessed the pornographic sites. Robert sued for wrongful discharge, contending that the real reason he was let go was the fact that three days after the termination some of his stock options were going to vest. Since the company contended that the home computer was likely to contain evidence that Robert was deliberately accessing pornography, it demanded that the computer be produced, with nothing deleted from the hard drive. Robert refused, arguing that he had an expectation of privacy when using a computer at home, even a computer supplied by his employer.
The court ordered Robert to turn over the computer under the terms required by his employer. It rejected the argument that the home computer was a “perk” for senior executives that could be used for personal purposes. In Robert’s case, the home computer was, in fact, primarily used by him and his family for personal matters. Information on the computer included his family’s financial information and personal correspondence. Robert and his family had been treating the home computer as a personal computer at their own risk.
Robert lacked a reasonable expectation of privacy in the home computer, in part because he had notice of and had consented to his employer’s policy allowing only business use of the computer. Another factor weighing against his position, however, was “accepted community norms.” He could not argue forcefully that there had been an invasion of privacy given that, according to the court, over three-quarters of major firms in the country monitor, record, and review employee communications and activities on the job.
An Expensive Tee Shot
For some, golf courses are like outdoor board rooms. The emphasis is as much on conducting business as it is on lowering handicaps. But if business transactions have taken priority over the game itself, there is a risk that an injury caused by someone’s negligence can have repercussions for the firm’s bottom line.
A member of a golf club invited a guest for a round of golf and a sales pitch as to why he should come to work for the member’s family business. The guest was new to golf, and his host did not fill him in about basic golf etiquette. The guest teed off on the first hole when another golfer on the same hole was only about 70 yards down the fairway. The tee shot struck the golfer in the eye, causing permanent partial loss of vision and a scar. The injured golfer sued the club member for negligence for not controlling her guest, as required under the club’s rules. She argued that the member did not meet her duty of stopping her guest from teeing off before the fairway was clear. In fact, the member had hit first, giving her uninitiated guest the impression that he could do the same.
Before the case could get to a jury, it was settled for a substantial amount. Most of the settlement cost was borne by the club member’s family business, because the golf outing was as much for recruiting an employee as for recreation. This case suggests the need for company policies requiring employees to supervise their guests when entertaining on a golf course, including a basic review of golf etiquette and safety for novice golfers.
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