Partner Brian Klein Quoted By Law360 about the Ninth Circuit’s Recent Landmark Cybercrime Decision and Firm Client Paige Thompson

Partner Brian Klein was quoted by Law360 explaining how last month’s Ninth Circuit cybercrime ruling is “a natural extension” of Supreme Court precedent and supports the firm’s defense of Paige Thompson, the alleged Capital One hacker, who is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Seattle.

Klein said last month’s hiQ v. LinkedIn ruling is “a natural extension” of the Supreme Court ruling in Van Buren v. U.S., the landmark Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) case. The Supreme Court held that an ex-Georgia police officer did not violate the CFAA, by exceeding authorized access when he looking up in a police database whether someone was an undercover officer in violation of department policy. Klein noted that the hiQ Ninth Circuit’s decision “further calls into question the DOJ’s often overly aggressive interpretation of the CFAA,” Klein said. “In Ms. Thompson’s case, we believe it helps show why the prosecutor’s CFAA theory is fatally flawed.”

Klein, Melissa Meister, and Emily Stierwalt of Waymaker represent Ms. Thompson along with attorneys in the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Seattle.