Don’t Text… While Someone Else is Driving

A New Jersey state court of appeals has cleared a young teen of liability, but has also placed a new burden on those sending text messages to people they know to be driving. In 2009, 17 year-old Shannon Colonna sent a single text message to a friend of hers while he was driving. The driver read the text and sent a return message 25 seconds after the original text was sent. The driver crossed a double-center line and hit a husband and wife, who were coming around a bend on their motorcycle. The crash caused both of the victims each to lose a portion of their leg. “We conclude that a person sending text messages has a duty not to text someone who is driving if the texter knows, or has special reason to know, the recipient will view the text while driving,” said Superior Court Appellate Division Judge Victor Ashrafi. He was joined in his opinion by Judge Michael Guadagno. The third member of the three-judge panel, Judge Marianne Espinosa, concurred with the decision to free the defendant from liability, but did not agree with the extension of a responsibility not to text if you know the recipient to be driving.

During the course of the case, it was revealed that Colonna and the driver had sent each other 62 texts that day, and over a 12-hour period, Colonna had sent or received 180 text messages. She explained in a deposition: “I’m a young teenager, that’s what we do.” The Court, however, found that Colonna did know that the recipient of her text was driving when she sent him the text.

While the Plaintiffs are disappointed that the claims against Colonna have been dismissed, they are encouraged with the creation of liability for a texter to refrain from texting when the sender knows the recipient to be driving. The Plaintiffs attorney, Stephen “Skippy” Weinstein, is still considering whether or not to appeal the decision.

Source: http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2013/08/ state_appeals_court_says_texters_can_be_liable_for_ distracting_drivers_but_tosses_out_claim_againt_r.html http://www.vogelitlawblog.com/2013/08/ articles/ecommerce/sending-text-messages -in-new-jersey-creates-liability/index.html

For more information, please visit our intellectual property service page.

Klemchuk LLP is an Intellectual Property (IP), Technology, Internet, and Business law firm located in Dallas, TX.  The firm offers comprehensive legal services including litigation and enforcement of all forms of IP as well as registration and licensing of patents, trademarks, trade dress, and copyrights.  The firm also provides a wide range of technology, Internet, e-commerce, and business services including business planning, formation, and financing, mergers and acquisitions, business litigation, data privacy, and domain name dispute resolution.  Additional information about the IP law firm and its IP law attorneys may be found at www.klemchuk.com.

Klemchuk LLP hosts Culture Counts, a blog devoted to the discussion of law firm culture and corporate core values with frequent topics about positive work environment, conscious capitalism, entrepreneurial management, positive workplace culture, workplace productivity, and corporate core values.