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Girl's Facebook Post Costs Her Dad $80,000

Hugh Pickens DOT Com writes "BBC reports that when Dana Snay learned her father had been awarded an $80,000 cash settlement in an age-discrimination lawsuit against his former employer, she couldn't resist bragging about it on Facebook. 'Mama and Papa Snay won the case against Gulliver,' the teen posted to her 1,200 Facebook friends. 'Gulliver is now officially paying for my vacation to Europe this summer. SUCK IT.' Trouble was her father had signed a confidentiality agreement so the school refused to pay a dime and a Florida appeals court has found in the school's favor. 'Snay violated the agreement by doing exactly what he had promised not to do,' wrote Judge Linda Ann Wells. 'His daughter then did precisely what the confidentiality agreement was designed to prevent.' Snay's father said in depositions that he and his wife knew they had to say something to their daughter because she suffered 'psychological scars' from issues during her enrollment at the school and was aware that they were in mediation with Gulliver attorneys. Attorneys say it's unlikely confiding in Dana Snay would have jeopardized the settlement — it was the facebook post that did them in. 'Remember when all you had to worry about was your daughter posting naked selfies of herself on Facebook?' writes Elie Mystal at Above the Law. 'Now, things are worse.'"

10 of 387 comments (clear)

  1. So why is this here? by rebelwarlock · · Score: 5, Insightful

    As near as I can tell, there's nothing especially tech related in this story. She screwed up in a way that many before her have screwed up, it's just that she happened to use facebook to do it. Nothing to see here.

    1. Re:So why is this here? by ATMAvatar · · Score: 4, Insightful

      To err is human, but to truly screw up requires a computer.

      --
      "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
  2. Parents will do stupid things by namgge · · Score: 4, Insightful

    There is only one way to keep something secret; don't tell anyone. And anyone includes your teenage daughter.

  3. Honestly, it seems justified. by schneidafunk · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Confidentiality agreements are *gasp* legal contracts. Their daughter made a stupid mistake, as teenagers do, that doesn't change the fact that the agreement was broken.

    --
    Some people die at 25 and aren't buried until 75. -Benjamin Franklin
    1. Re:Honestly, it seems justified. by Zero__Kelvin · · Score: 5, Insightful

      "Confidentiality agreements are *gasp* legal contracts."

      And there's the problem. Confidentiality agreements should be illegal in the context of a legal case. If you don't want people to know you are a scumbag company, don't be a scumbag company. Paying people off to keep the secret seems phenomenally immoral.

      --
      Guns don't kill people; Physics kills people! - John Lithgow as Dick Solomon on Third Rock From The Sun
  4. Re:Teenagers will do stupid things? by mysidia · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Yeah. "We screwed up. We should've known better, but we decided to do it anyway. Here's our penalty money." "Oh, you screwed up. Your daughter didn't play by our rules. We take it all back...for teh win!"

    They screwed up by divulging legally privileged information to a child, who has not yet reached the maturity to appropriately respect the confidentiality requirement.

  5. Re:Teenagers will do stupid things? by pijokela · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Then they screwed up already by signing the agreement. I don't think it's realistic to have this kind of stuff happening in your family and then not telling you teenage kid the end result. I mean, after a year of mom and dad being nervous and stressed about the thing you will - not say a word to your kid? WTF kind of parenting is that? So they should not have taken an agreement that had that kind of a clause in the first place.

  6. Re:Teenagers will do stupid things? by thewolfkin · · Score: 4, Insightful

    she's a teenage girl. you should be able to sit her down and say "Honey, We just want to let you know that we've reached a resolution. We can't legally tell you and you can't tell anyone the details but you don't have to worry it's over". A teenage girl should have the maturity to understand and accept that.

    --
    Just another second banana
  7. Re:Teenagers will do stupid things? by Nyder · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Then they screwed up already by signing the agreement. I don't think it's realistic to have this kind of stuff happening in your family and then not telling you teenage kid the end result. I mean, after a year of mom and dad being nervous and stressed about the thing you will - not say a word to your kid? WTF kind of parenting is that? So they should not have taken an agreement that had that kind of a clause in the first place.

    Telling her wasn't the problem. Her telling everyone via Facebook is the problem.

    --
    Be seeing you...
  8. Re:Teenagers will do stupid things? by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 4, Insightful

    What kind of retards are people raising? I got to hear lots of interesting things when I was young, and I always understood that I wasn't supposed to talk about it to anyone, even if my parents were present.

    Because we don't allow people to grow up today.

    Whereas quite a few years back, people were married really early, and raising children not long after they hit puberty. Both my Grandparents were married in their early teens. I was 21, and my better half 17 when we were married in the mid 70's. Today, 30 is considered a little early by many.

    Now, people in their late 20's are considered not fully mature. We've artificially extended childhood until then.. One thing is for certain, children will remain children as long as you allow them. This college age girl had the mental maturity that a 12 year old would have had at one time.

    --
    The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.