Court Holds Actual Viewing or Recording Unnecessary to Establish a Cause of Action for Invasion of Privacy

Lauren Gelman — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 12:06:40 -0800

Plaintiffs, employed on the campus of defendants' residential facility for abused and neglected children, appealed the entry of summary judgment for defendants on their invasion of privacy and related claims. Defendants had installed a video camera in plaintiffs' office without their knowledge or consent, but only connected the camera's wireless receptor to monitoring and recording equipment after plaintiffs went home for the day, disconnecting the receptor again in the morning before they arrived for work. The California appellate court held that actual viewing or recording of plaintiffs was not necessary to their invasion of privacy claim; rather, the creation of access to such information was actionable.

Hernandez v. Hillsides, Inc., 48 Cal.Rptr.3d 780 (Cal.App. 2 Dist. 2006), cert. granted, 53 Cal.Rptr.3d 801 (Cal. 2007).

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Court Holds Actual Viewing or Recording Unnecessary to Establish a Cause of Action for Invasion of Privacy