Litigation and Social Media

Social networking sites are not just for social networking. As individuals become more and more comfortable with presenting “private” information to the “public,” information posted on social networking sites can provide a rich source of discovery and can be a game-changer in litigation. The challenges that electronic communication presents during litigation began with e-mails and continues with the proliferation of social media. The increasing use of social networking sites, such as profiles and messages on Facebook and LinkedIn, “tweets” and direct messages on Twitter, and YouTube, has changed the discovery landscape again. This change, however, presents a positive and beneficial discovery tool for companies to use in litigation.