A recent decision from a federal appeals court in California will likely have broad implications on what screening procedures, if any, a service provider adopts for user-generated posts and material. The case, which is called Mavrix Photographs LLC v. LiveJournal Inc., limits the availability of safe harbor protection for social media platforms and other sites that use moderators to review user-submitted posts, even when the website has processes in place for expeditiously removing materials identified in

You had a great idea and you started a business around it. Now, you need to protect that intellectual property. First, check to be sure that your idea is original. Conduct patent and trademark searches early in the development of new products and processes to make sure there isn’t anyone else already protecting the same ideas or concepts. If you do have an original, patentable idea, go ahead and file a patent application. Filing an initial

Collaborative work environments with shared spaces are an increasingly popular take on traditional office space, but can come with less than ideal leasing terms. Most co-working spaces operate using an occupation license agreement that allows members to use the space for a particular purpose or set of purposes. But it is much easier for a landlord to revoke a licensee’s right of access to than it is to evict a tenant. A commercial leasing agreement for

A strong cybersecurity program is designed to protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of a business’s information systems. These systems can include any computer or networked electronic system used by a business, and certain sensitive business and consumer information. Programs should be designed to perform three primary functions: Identify and assess threats and risks; Protect information systems and sensitive information from malicious use and unauthorized access; and Detect, respond to and recover from cybersecurity “events” such

Many companies employ third-party advertising services that use online consumer data and automated software to place advertisements on websites, in apps and within user-generated video services. But this wide-reaching marketing tool comes with the risk that your advertisement and brand could be displayed alongside offensive content. Third-party targeted advertising services, such as AdSense from Google and Bing Advertising from Microsoft, offer the ability to exclude targeted ads from pornographic or gambling sites. But beyond that it