LinkedIn Corporation has been sued in a class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
The case is entitled Perkins et al v. LinkedIn Corporation, Case No. CV 5:2013-cv-04303. The complaint alleges that LinkedIn appropriated the names, photographs, likenesses, and identities of Plaintiffs to advertise its products and services for a commercial purpose without Plaintiffs’ consent by sending endorsement emails.
The proposed LinkedIn class action lawsuit is brought on behalf of the following putative class members:
“All natural persons in the United States who had an account registered on www.linkedin.com as of May 15, 2013, and had their names, photographs, likenesses, or identities associated with that account used in an endorsement email sent to third parties by Linkedln.”
The LinkedIn class action lawsuit complaint asserts legal claims for alleged violation of California’s Common Law Right of Publicity, Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200, the Stored Communications Act, the Wiretap Act, Cal. Penal Code 502 and the California Invasion Of Privacy Act. The complaint seeks declaratory relief, disgorgement, restitution, damages, statutory damages, reasonable litigation expenses, attorneys’ fees and pre and post judgment interest.
