Ogden v. All-State Career School, No. 2:13cv406, 2014 WL 1646934 (W.D. Pa. Apr. 23, 2014)

Key Insight: Court observed that ordering plaintiff to permit access to or produce complete copies of his social networking accounts would permit defendant to cast too wide a net and sanction an inquiry into scores of quasi-personal information that would be irrelevant and non-discoverable, and stated: ?Defendant is no more entitled to such unfettered access to plaintiff’s personal email and social networking communications than it is to rummage through the desk drawers and closets in plaintiff’s home”; court ruled that defendant was only entitled to limited discovery of plaintiff’s communications, and set out particular steps that plaintiff must take to comply with defendant?s requests

Nature of Case: Hostile work environment and disparate treatment based on reverse gender discrimination and retaliation claims

Electronic Data Involved: Electronic communications made or affirmatively acknowledged by plaintiff on any social networking website (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, MySpace) during the period of alleged harassment