Gersowitz, Libo & Korek, P.C. Comments on The Supreme Court’s Decision Making It Harder to Obtain Cell Phone Records in Civil Litigation

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Jeff Korek

The bottom line is that allowing personal injury attorneys dealing with motor vehicle accidents cases to obtain the cell phone records of the opposing driver can bring justice for those killed as a result of cell phone distraction accidents

New York, NY (PRWEB) July 22, 2014

Personal injury attorney Jeff S. Korek, a senior partner at Gersowitz, Libo & Korek, P.C., one of New York’s leading personal injury firms, recently published an article in the New York Law Journal on the recent Supreme Court decision in Riley v. California, which makes it even more difficult to obtain cell phone records of an opposing driver in order to help prove fault.

For personal injury attorneys dealing with motor vehicle accidents, obtaining the cell phone records for both the defendant and plaintiff drivers may prove vital to an argument that the defendant was negligent due to distracted driving or that the plaintiff is comparatively at fault due to their own distracted driving, said Korek.

According to an article published in the New York Law Journal, the general case law rule seems to be that in order to obtain cell phone records, a party must show a good-faith basis that the opposing driver was using a cell phone around the time of the accident. The article further notes that this decision is similarly contrasted in other case law, which hold that merely asserting that a party was in possession of a cell phone at the time of the accident will not constitute a good-faith basis for the disclosure of cell phone records.

The New York Law Journal Article states that the Supreme Court in Riley held that the police need a warrant to search data in cell phones. However, the Court did not indicate any intention to overrule the holdings of previous cases that a person retains no constitutionally protected privacy interest in the numbers he dials on the cell phone and the time stamps. Nevertheless, the Riley court has made it considerably more difficult to obtain these records.

“The bottom line is that allowing personal injury attorneys dealing with motor vehicle accidents cases to obtain the cell phone records of the opposing driver can bring justice for those killed as a result of cell phone distraction accidents,” said Korek. “It can provide injured victims with the medical treatment they need and the money damages they deserve.”

About Gersowitz, Libo & Korek, P.C.

The attorneys at Gersowitz, Libo & Korek, P.C. are committed to the relentless pursuit of victim’s rights in New York and New Jersey for over 25 years. They urge anyone who has suffered injuries as a result of the negligent actions of another party to contact them immediately.

Read: Obtaining Cell Phone Records in Civil Litigation by Jeff S. Korek and Abraham Z. Melamed.

Contact:
Jeff S. Korek
Gersowitz Libo & Korek, P.C.
jkorek(at)lawyertime(dot)com
(212) 385-4410

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