Lawyers and Jury Consultants' Social Network Searching Includes Vetting Jurors
Recently, while watching the news, I saw an online video clip of a Burger King employee taking a bath in the Burger King sink. There he was, suds and all and (to borrow from McDonalds) "lovin' it." The report concluded by remarking the young man (and his fellow employees) no longer work at BK.
This is just one example of what you put into cyberspace may hurt you and can be used in ways you might not have thought about. We're just beginning to see how this is playing out in business and in law.
I've seen HR people advised to do a Google search on employment prospects and to review the first ten pages of results. Elsewhere I've spoken to corporate officers who have commented on how a LinkedIn or Social Networking Sites Help Vet Jurors, and consider how social network sites may be being used to examine jurors.
Jury consultant Robert Hirschhorn, mentioned in Kay's article, explains he advises his clients [lawyers],
to keep information gleaned off the Internet hush-hush... [and] use it for peremptory strikes, without giving any indication why the person is being bounced...
This is done so other jurors won't learn their being investigated and to prevent potential backlash. Speaking of trial tactics observed after a jury was chosen, Hirschhorn adds,
...he is just now starting to see lawyers use information in opening and closings. For example, a lawyer discovered from a person's MySpace page that his favorite book was The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, and found a way to subtly include that reference into his closing arguments.
While some of these ideas many not be new to trial lawyers and jury consultants, they probably are new to those who are sitting on a jury or applying for their first job. Beware what you post, once it's out there, there's no taking it back...
