Question
After dismissing a 3-year-old student for extremely bad behavior, the child’s parent retaliated by adding my business to several consumer websites and posting scathing reviews of my school. He egregiously misrepresented facts about the situation with his child and my character. I responded with a point-by-point rebuttal of the false claims. I never mentioned the child’s name, although I included one photo in which the face and body of the child are not visible. He is now threatening a lawsuit under a number of privacy and related theories.
Answer
Given that you face potential legal liability, I strongly recommend that you consult with an attorney who can give you specific legal advice.
As a very general matter, one minimizes their risk of an invasion of privacy lawsuit by not using a child’s name or image, but does not eliminate such a risk as long as the child remains identifiable. And although a strong argument can likely be made that the father placed the private facts about his child at issue by posting the information on the web himself, privacy issues surrounding minors, especially very young children, are highly sensitive.
I am sorry that I cannot be more helpful. If you need help finding a lawyer knowledgeable in this area, you may want to start contact your local Bar Association for referral to an attorney.
Bryan Cave LLP is general counsel for the First Amendment Coalition and responds to FAC hotline inquiries. In responding to these inquiries, we can give general information regarding open government and speech issues but cannot provide specific legal advice or representation.
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