The Reddit post with further details can be found below [1]. Even if LoanStreet is innocent here, it is interesting that they took the "scorched Earth" approach to using their legal team to...
The Reddit post with further details can be found below [1]. Even if LoanStreet is innocent here, it is interesting that they took the "scorched Earth" approach to using their legal team to attempt to silence an employee they fired. Is it typical for innocent employers to sue employees who misrepresent why they were fired on social media? Here is the initial complaint about LoanStreet's labor practices [2] and here is where this developer, to great personal risk, posted the initial update about the lawsuit [3].
It seems that suing employees who complain about your labor practices is going to cause more reputational harm than not in my mind.
Probably not, but it's not as if the former employer's actions were limited to rants on social media. If you flip to paragraph 49 of the complaint, you'll see that they actually took out google...
Even if LoanStreet is innocent here, it is interesting that they took the "scorched Earth" approach to using their legal team to attempt to silence an employee they fired. Is it typical for innocent employers to sue employees who misrepresent why they were fired on social media?
Probably not, but it's not as if the former employer's actions were limited to rants on social media. If you flip to paragraph 49 of the complaint, you'll see that they actually took out google ads to disparage the company. Obviously this isn't inherently defamatory (the truth is an absolute defense against defamation), but if the judge rules that the defendant actually did defame LoanStreet.... Well, let's just say they aren't doing themselves any favors.
Also (and again, this doesn't reflect the actual merits of the lawsuit -- I only point this out so that others won't make the same mistake), the defendant basically handled being served in the worse possible way. Here's some free not-legal-advice from a non-lawyer: if someone sues you for defamation, you should (1) shut up and (2) lawyer up. Maybe one day you find yourself in a similar situation. Maybe the lawsuit truly is meritless and worthy of public ridicule. Maybe you and your lawyer decide the most effective strategy for getting the lawsuit dropped is by publicly shaming the company. But do you know who's going to lead the charge? That's right -- your lawyer, not you, the lowly employee already being sued for compensatory and punitive damages amounting to at least one million dollars.
Edit: I guess this comment summarizes my overall feelings.
I remember reading his original post and thinking it was leaving things out. Sort of like when you read posts on /r/AmItheAsshole that seem a little off and then through the other comments you find out that the OP was in the wrong but writing only the points that support them.
It's hard to take the defendant's analysis of the lawsuit seriously when they've demonstrated so little legal savviness.
Aside, do you have a link to the HN discussion? I'd be interested in reading what the folks there thought too. Here's the HN post that had the most engagement (albeit not much): https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27583959
This is why I'm reluctant to criticise former employers publicly on social media. Afraid that one could either sue me out of pocket for defamation or that I could end up on some industry-wide...
This is why I'm reluctant to criticise former employers publicly on social media. Afraid that one could either sue me out of pocket for defamation or that I could end up on some industry-wide blacklist.
I've previously worked for call centres and B2B suppliers that I'd otherwise happily scorch the earth around.
The Reddit post with further details can be found below [1]. Even if LoanStreet is innocent here, it is interesting that they took the "scorched Earth" approach to using their legal team to attempt to silence an employee they fired. Is it typical for innocent employers to sue employees who misrepresent why they were fired on social media? Here is the initial complaint about LoanStreet's labor practices [2] and here is where this developer, to great personal risk, posted the initial update about the lawsuit [3].
It seems that suing employees who complain about your labor practices is going to cause more reputational harm than not in my mind.
[1] https://old.reddit.com/r/cscareerquestions/comments/qh2xho/name_shame_loanstreet_ny_wants_federal_judge_to/
[2] https://old.reddit.com/r/cscareerquestions/comments/o3jpfc/name_and_shame_loanstreet_ny_cheated_me_out_of/
[3] https://old.reddit.com/r/cscareerquestions/comments/q42lgm/name_shame_loanstreet_ny_is_suing_me_for_over_3m/
Probably not, but it's not as if the former employer's actions were limited to rants on social media. If you flip to paragraph 49 of the complaint, you'll see that they actually took out google ads to disparage the company. Obviously this isn't inherently defamatory (the truth is an absolute defense against defamation), but if the judge rules that the defendant actually did defame LoanStreet.... Well, let's just say they aren't doing themselves any favors.
Also (and again, this doesn't reflect the actual merits of the lawsuit -- I only point this out so that others won't make the same mistake), the defendant basically handled being served in the worse possible way. Here's some free not-legal-advice from a non-lawyer: if someone sues you for defamation, you should (1) shut up and (2) lawyer up. Maybe one day you find yourself in a similar situation. Maybe the lawsuit truly is meritless and worthy of public ridicule. Maybe you and your lawyer decide the most effective strategy for getting the lawsuit dropped is by publicly shaming the company. But do you know who's going to lead the charge? That's right -- your lawyer, not you, the lowly employee already being sued for compensatory and punitive damages amounting to at least one million dollars.
Edit: I guess this comment summarizes my overall feelings.
It's hard to take the defendant's analysis of the lawsuit seriously when they've demonstrated so little legal savviness.
Aside, do you have a link to the HN discussion? I'd be interested in reading what the folks there thought too.Here's the HN post that had the most engagement (albeit not much): https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27583959This is why I'm reluctant to criticise former employers publicly on social media. Afraid that one could either sue me out of pocket for defamation or that I could end up on some industry-wide blacklist.
I've previously worked for call centres and B2B suppliers that I'd otherwise happily scorch the earth around.