Can a Neighbor Take Pictures of Us in Our Driveway?
Full Question:
Answer:
Invasion of privacy is the intrusion into the personal life of another, without just cause, which can give the person whose privacy has been invaded a right to bring a lawsuit for damages against the person or entity that intruded. It encompasses workplace monitoring, Internet privacy, data collection, and other means of disseminating private information. A non-public individual has a right to privacy from: a) intrusion on one's solitude or into one's private affairs; b) public disclosure of embarrassing private information; c) publicity which puts him/her in a false light to the public; d) appropriation of one's name or picture for personal or commercial advantage.
To prove an invasion of privacy, the court must find a person had a "reasonable expectation of privacy." Courts are not in agreement on the precise definition of the legal standard of a "reasonable expectation of privacy." Invasion of privacy is the intrusion into the personal life of another, without just cause, which can give the person whose privacy has been invaded a right to bring a lawsuit for damages against the person or entity that intruded. It encompasses workplace monitoring, Internet privacy, data collection, and other means of disseminating private information. A non-public individual has a right to privacy from: a) intrusion on one's solitude or into one's private affairs; b) public disclosure of embarrassing private information; c) publicity which puts him/her in a false light to the public; d) appropriation of one's name or picture for personal or commercial advantage.
One who gives publicity to a matter concerning another that places the other before the public in a false light is subject to liability to the other for invasion of his privacy, if:
(a) the false light in which the other was placed would be highly offensive to a reasonable person, and
(b) the actor had knowledge of or acted in reckless disregard as to the falsity of the publicized matter and the false light in which the other would be placed.
The tort of appropriation involves the appropriation of a person's name or likeness for the defendant's economic benefit. This branch of invasion of privacy law recognizes an individual's right to privacy from commercial exploitation. It emphasizes a person's property right to exploit his or her own name or image for his or her own economic benefit. This type of privacy right is often described as an interference with the "right of publicity." The right of publicity recognizes the individual's right to regulate and obtain the benefits from the commercial exploitation of his name, likeness, identifying characteristics, and performances. Exceptions, among others, include when the information is disseminated as part of newsworthy events or matters of public interest, or consent to publicity.
For further discussion, please see:
http://www.rcfp.org/photoguide/intro.html
