Apple lambasted by judge for not turning over documents in privacy case

[techbeck]

Apple may be facing penalties in an ongoing privacy case after a failure to produce documents in a timely fashion. Bloomberg reports that Judge Paul S. Grewal had strong words for the company's legal team today. The privacy case, in which Apple is accused of collecting data from its customers even when their geo-location services were turned off, has seen Apple reprimanded a number of times for not providing emails and documents that Grewal said "absolutely should've been collected and they were not."

Grewal got involved in forcing Apple's hand on March 6th, when he ordered the company to explain how it had collected documents it had turned over to attorneys for the other side. Unhappy with what the company had given at that point, he asked for specifics on search terms, dates of searches, and how the company determined which individuals to target. Since then Apple has turned over almost double the documents it originally produced.

Double the documents since the court intervened

Apple tried to have the case dismissed earlier this month, but the bid was rejected by Judge Lucy Koh ? who is handling the case in conjunction with Judge Grewal ? on March 7th. At that time, Koh expressed dismay that Apple was seeking to have the case dismissed based on emails and evidence it hadn't yet disclosed to attorneys for the other side.

During today's hearing, Grewal encouraged the attorneys for the plaintiffs to pursue sanctions against Apple for its behavior. For its part, Apple finished filing the remainder of its outstanding documents last night. According to Bloomberg, Apple attorney Ashlie Beringer said the company had undergone "Herculean efforts" since Grewal's March 6th mandate, and that it had now completed its document production.

http://www.theverge.com/2013/3/19/4125636/apple-lambasted-by-judge-for-not-turning-over-documents-in-privacy-case

[Praetor]

How do you like them Apple? :laugh:

[Growled Member]

It couldn't happen to a nicer company.

[Brian M. Veteran]

These apple lawsuits are getting a bit ridiculous.

Apple have a large bank balance, and it seems everyone wants a piece of it.

[FloatingFatMan]

^ Do you find the large number of lawsuits Apple file against other companies equally ridiculous?

They have a massive bank balance and want to make it larger and larger, without giving any of it up to their shareholders.

[Alwaysonacoffebreak]

These apple lawsuits are getting a bit ridiculous.

Apple have a large bank balance, and it seems everyone wants a piece of it.

You mean like the 700m fine MS just received from the EU?

[TheLegendOfMart]

These apple lawsuits are getting a bit ridiculous.

Apple have a large bank balance, and it seems everyone wants a piece of it.

So because they have a big bank balance they should be exempt from being punished for doing something naughty?

[techbeck]

These apple lawsuits are getting a bit ridiculous.

Apple have a large bank balance, and it seems everyone wants a piece of it.

Has nothing to do with the amount of money Apple has. It has to do with Apple not complying with a court order.

[Coagulated]

I am neutral-ish / sway towards anti-Apple, but this has tickled me a lot. I've always perceived them as particularly unscrupulous and this does not surprise me.

[theyarecomingforyou]

These apple lawsuits are getting a bit ridiculous.

Apple have a large bank balance, and it seems everyone wants a piece of it.

Apple initiates a lot of these lawsuits, leaving the recipients little choice but to file counter-suits. In fact Apple is one of the worst patent trolls, with Microsoft not far behind. Google on the other-hand has been more reluctant to pursue lawsuits over patents and has pushed for companies to cross licence them, though it's far from being without fault.

[Knife Party]

Good! Stop stealing and trading user information like bloody baseball cards then Apple. Says there even when geo-location gps is turned off the OS what still colllecting specific data..... THIS IS STEALING

[+Majesticmerc MVC]

Good! Stop stealing and trading user information like bloody baseball cards then Apple. Says there even when geo-location gps is turned off the OS what still colllecting specific data..... THIS IS STEALING

No, it's not stealing. It's a privacy violation (spyware?), but it's not stealing under any recognized definition of the word. As far as I'm aware, Apple don't provide this information to third parties either, so they're not trading user information.