ZT: Do judges need to become comfortable using the technology that’s increasingly coming before them to rule on it? Do judges need to be on Twitter, on Facebook, wearing a FitBit?

JF: Judges unquestionably have to be technologically adept and understand an intricate technology. That is easier if you use these devices yourself. I think a judge can conquer the technology, even if she doesn’t understand Twitter and Facebook by using it, because there are other ways to learn about it. But obviously judges must be familiar with the technology.

But the problem is not a judicial one. The problem is that Congress has not looked at the Stored Communications Act since 1986. My gosh, 1986! [The Stored Communications Act governs the protection and use by law enforcement of electronically stored information.]

If you look at the opinions about the Stored Communications Act, they are some of the most complicated opinions you will see, because it’s a classic example of the square peg not fitting in the round hole. The definitions in the Stored Communications Act are as of 1986, and they may or may not relate to the multiplicities of technologies coming out. There [is] out there a lot of wonderful thinking about how the act could be amended to bring it kicking and screaming into the 21st century. But no movement by Congress. That’s deeply troubling.

Read more: www.corpcounsel.com/id=1202720051688/Law-at-the-Speed-of-Technology#ixzz3X6oHZEhT

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