With the continued rise of social media platforms and the increased prevalence of smart phones, courts are presented with the conundrum of interpreting the legal import of emojis, or small digital images that express an idea without the use of alphabetical characters. The written expressions of a litigant or witness to a case provide valuable evidence; however, in the case of emojis, the meaning of those expressions can become convoluted. For example, courts have found that emojis can be interpreted to mean: a contract was formed; an individual was communicating a threat; or the communicant possessed guilty knowledge. The North Carolina Rules of Evidence, similar to all other states,…
-
-
Depositions 101: Eight Tips to Ease Your Mind
The movie “The Social Network” used the depositions of Eduardo Saverin and the Winklevoss twins, who sued Mark Zuckerberg over the creation of Facebook, to tell its story. Depositions in real life are also used to hear one party’s side of the story so the attorneys know what to expect at trial. Most people have never had their deposition taken and, like many parts of the legal process, it can be daunting to the uninitiated. Knowing what to expect can alleviate much of that worry. What is a Deposition and Do I Need an Attorney? At their core, depositions are merely a question and answer session between a person that has information…
