Some FAQs about the law and the litigation that has ensued.
The New Jersey privacy statute – “Daniel’s Law” – has been in full effect for only a little more than a year now, but New Jersey courts have already been inundated with a wave of lawsuits. In February 2024 alone, more than 140 lawsuits were filed against businesses that publish addresses and related information online. Here are some Frequently Asked Questions.
What is “Daniel’s Law”?
Daniel’s Law was enacted in New Jersey in 2020 in response to the murder of Daniel Anderl, son of U.S. District Court Judge Esther Salas. It is believed the gunman targeting Judge Salas found the judge’s home address online. The law is designed to protect the personal information of “Covered Persons” by allowing them to request the removal of their home addresses and unpublished phone numbers from public records.
Who is protected by the law?
“Covered Persons” are defined as active and retired judges, law enforcement officers, child protective investigators, and prosecutors, as well as the immediate family members of these individuals who reside in the same household.
In 2023, the law was amended to allow individuals to assign their claims to third parties, including law firms and software companies. The amendments also authorized courts to award “actual damages, but not less than liquidated damages computed at the rate of $1,000 for each violation,” as well as punitive damages and attorneys’ fees.
Who is subject to the law?
The law addresses “any person or business association” and directs they “shall not disclose” or “otherwise make available” the individual’s home address or phone number. “Disclose” is defined broadly to include activities designed to “deliver, transfer, post, publish, distribute … and making available or searchable within a searchable database.” Industries ranging from “data brokers” to realtors have been named in the lawsuits.
Why are we seeing so much litigation?
The 2023 amendments enabled the “assignment” of thousands of claims to one of the plaintiffs named in every lawsuit, which resulted in a surge of lawsuits.
On November 26, 2024, a federal judge in New Jersey rejected a constitutional challenge to Daniel’s Law, which is currently pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on a request for immediate review. Several lawsuits that had been removed from New Jersey State court to federal court were also remanded, which is also an issue that has been sent to the Third Circuit with a request for immediate review.
The Constangy Cyber Team regularly counsels businesses of all sizes and industries on how to comply with the growing number of data privacy laws and regulations. If you would like additional information on how to prepare your organization, please contact us at cyber@constangy.com.
Senior CounselHe is a member of Constangy cyber litigation team and defends clients in class action matters resulting from data privacy and security events. Rob brings several years of data privacy and cybersecurity litigation experience to the ...
The Constangy Cyber Advisor posts regular updates on legislative developments, data privacy, and information security trends. Our blog posts are informed through the Constangy Cyber Team's experience managing thousands of data breaches, providing robust compliance advisory services, and consultation on complex data privacy and security litigation.
