Avoiding Legal Hassles
Chapter 3
Types of Legal Problems
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False product and
advertising claims
Misleading news
releases
Unauthorized use of
photos of celebrities,
employees or regular
people
“Front groups” and
deceptive tactics
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Disseminating false
earning reports
through news
channels and releases
PR people can be held
legally liable if they
provide advice or
directly or even
indirectly support a
client or employer’s
illegal activity
Conspiracy
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PR people can be prosecuted as coconspirators
The courts have ruled on more than one
occasion that PR firms cannot hide behind
the defense of “the client told me to do it”
Libel and Defamation
Injury to reputation; exposing someone to hatred, ridicule
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An item on a company blog or a widely
distributed e-mail saying “Joe was feeling
no pain” at the office party could be
construed as defamation
An unflattering picture of a disheveled
employee walking out of the door after
the annual Christmas party could lead to a
defamation lawsuit if it is published in the
company newsletter
Careful with Wording & Depictions!
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News releases announcing that someone was
terminated or “let go” need to be very carefully
handled
Claims or criticisms about a competing company
in news releases, ads and videos can lead to
lawsuits if the company feels the victim of “false
statements” depicting it in a “disparaging
manner.” (Subway vs. Quiznos, p. 65)
This proved to be a landmark case involving
liability over user generated videos
Better Safe than Sorry!
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Statements should be truthful, with factual
evidence and scientific demonstration available
to substantiate them
An organization can offer the opinion that its
product or service is the “best” or “a
revolutionary development” if the context clearly
shows that the communication is a statement of
opinion attributed to someone
This is classified as “puffery” and doesn’t require
factual evidence, according to Federal Trade
Commission (FTC) guidelines
Invasion of Privacy
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Organizations need to be careful not to
violate their employees rights to privacy
Potential trouble can come from:
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Employee newsletters
Photo releases
Product publicity and advertising
Media inquiries about employees
Employee blogs and virtual communities
Important to Know that…
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A company newsletter or magazine does
not enjoy the same First Amendment
protection that the news media enjoy
when they claim “newsworthiness” and
“public interest”
So, avoid anything that might embarrass
or subject an employee to ridicule by
fellow employees
Get Signed Permission
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Permission needed when photos of, or comments by,
employees are used in company or product publicity,
ads, brochures
Chemical Bank of New York was successfully sued by 39
employees whose photos were used without their
permission in ads designed to “humanize” the bank’s
image (see attorney quote on page 67)
A Lafayette College graduate sued the college for using
a photo of his mother and him at graduation ceremonies
in a financial aid brochure– without getting their consent
Misappropriation of personality– don’t use a celebrity’s
name or image (or anyone for that mattter) for
advertising purposes without permission– this
is a form of trademark infringement
Media Inquiries
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OK to confirm that the person is or was an
employee
OK to give person’s title and job description
OK to give employment beginning and end dates
But do not share info with media about: salary,
home address, marital status, number of
children, job performance
Must be careful because media inquiries have
the potential of invading an employee’s right of
privacy
Blogs and Online Communities
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Many organizations now have policies regarding these
In general, organizations prohibit employee bloggers from talking
about colleagues or making comments about supervisors and
executives
“Victims” can feel defamed and seek legal recourse
Employees should be very careful in discussing company business in
any way on blogs, Facebook, Twitter, etc.
Employees participating in virtual online communities such as
Second Life are urged, by their employers, to be good “Netizens”
IBM has guidelines telling employees to avoid discussing intellectual
property with unauthorized people; to not discriminate or harass;
and as far as the appearance of avatars (Second Life virtual world),
to “be sensitive to the appropriateness of your avatar or persona’s
appearance when you are meeting with IBM clients or conducting
IBM business.”
Copyright Law
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Copyright involves protection of creative works
from unauthorized use
PR people should be aware of copyright law
from two perspectives: what organizational
materials should be copyrighted and how to
correctly utilize the copyrighted materials of
others
Under current U.S. law, a copyright protects
original material for the life of the creator plus
70 years for individual works and 95 years from
publication of copyrights held by corporations
Public Domain
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Not all materials, however, have copyright
protection
Some material is considered to be in the “public
domain” because of its age
Example: Works of Shakespeare, Chopin, Mozart
can be used without violating copyright
Most works published in the U.S. prior to 1923
are in the public domain; between 1923-1963
are also unless the copyrights were renewed
Fair Use
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These provisions allow for some use of copyrighted
material for educational purposes or reviews but the
quoted material must be brief in relation to the length of
the original work
But always include complete attribution and do not use
in advertising/marketing without permission
Licensing fees should be arranged and paid in the case
of mass-producing newspaper or magazine articles, and
for using protected music, film, TV shows, etc.
Government documents, considered to be in the public
domain, can be quoted and copied freely, but be careful
if you try to use as an endorsement in a misleading way
without giving all the facts and circumstances
Trademark Law
A trademark is a word, symbol, or slogan that identifies a product’s
origin. It serves as an indicator of quality.
The following are all registered trademarks protected by law:
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Dockers
iTunes
Big Gulp
American Idol
eBay
Pepto-Bismal
Xbox
Bubble Wrap
Drain-O
Coke
Post-It Note
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PR writers should follow these
basic guidelines:
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Trademarks are proper
adjectives and should be
capitalized and followed by a
generic noun or phrase
Example: Kleenex tissues and
Rollerblade skates
Trademarks should not be
pluralized or used in the
possessive form
Trademarks are never verbs
Saying “The client FedExed
the package” violates the rule
See Post-it Notes notice (p. 77)
And Fed-Ex notice (p. 78)
See PR writers’ role (p. 78)
Regulatory Agencies
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Federal Trade Commission (FTC)- ensures that
advertisements are not deceptive or misleading
The agency also has jurisdiction over product
news releases and other forms of product
publicity, such as videos and brochures
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)monitors the financial affairs of publicly traded
companies and protects the interests of
stockholders
PR can come under SEC scrutiny due to the
distribution of misleading information, failure to
make a timely disclosure of material, or by
conveying crucial information in a vague way or
burying it deep in a news release