Plaintiffs must show actual damages from privacy violation

Trial Notebook

By Steven P. Garmisa

Hoey & Farina

Posted June 15, 2022 10:31 AM

Bryan Seale alleged Gary Peacock violated the Stored Communications Act by surreptitiously accessing a computerized account containing Seale’s confidential business data.The complaint requested $1,000 in statutory damages for each of Peacock’s alleged violations of the SCA, but a federal judge in Colorado tossed the claim because Seale failed to allege actual damage. Joining the debate about the SCA, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed.Although Seale had standing to pursue an SCA claim, “a plaintiff must show …

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