Pittwater Life September 2018 Issue

many it is considered an inappropriate
and unconventional
way for a president to express
his thoughts. However, it seems
rare that a Trump tweet does
not receive worldwide coverage.
Selfie – A ‘selfie’ is a photograph
taken of oneself, usually
taken via a smartphone and
shared via social media.
Interestingly, the American
Psychiatric Association has
officially added ‘Taking Selfies’
to their list of mental disorders.
This complaint now sits beside
disorders such as schizophrenia,
and Bipolar disorder. The
Association’s definition of Selfies
is “... the obsessive compulsive
desire to take photos of
one’s self and post them on social
media as a way to make up
for the lack of self-esteem and
to fill a gap in intimacy”. (Gosh!
Kevin Rudd, Malcolm Turnbull?
Surely not…)
So much of social media is
unfiltered as people discuss
their private thoughts and
lives and provide a more-orless
permanent record of their
activities.
This can be risky in some
contexts and investigators and
insurance companies are now
using social media as a valuable
tool, to find people and to
check on a claimant’s activities.
Tagging a link can create a
link to a profile. On Facebook,
you can tag a photo or a post to
show who’s in the photo or post
a status update to show who you
are with. If you tag a friend in
your status update, anyone (say
an investigator) who sees that
update can click on your friend’s
name and go to that profile.
A person who makes a personal
injury claim may exaggerate
their symptoms. They may
claim injuries which are clearly
contradicted by social media.
A plaintiff claimed major
psychological injury from a car
accident. However, her Facebook
and Twitter accounts indicated
that she had read books,
attended events, had gone out
with friends and taken a holiday
as well as been able to present a
paper for International Women’s
Day. This was at odds with her
statement that she had not been
able to speak in public after
the accident. (Frost v Kourouche
[2014] NSW CA.)
Similarly in Victoria, another
personal injury claim was
also defeated when the claim
for alleged brain injury and
depression was contradicted
by evidence of the plaintiff’s
active engagement on social
media, which included evidence
of socialising without physical
difficulties and engaging in
“prolific conversations” to be
likely to be inconsistent with her
claims. (Munday v Court [2013]
VSCA 65.)
So how should one treat
social media? If in business, a
prudent course would be to be
circumspect and careful and
to make a distinction between
business and pleasure, between
private and public matters. And
if in doubt? Stay offline!
Comment supplied by
Jennifer Harris, of Jennifer
Harris & Associates, Solicitors,
4/57 Avalon Parade,
Avalon Beach.
T: 9973 2011. F: 9918 3290.
E: jennifer@jenniferharris.com.au
W: www.jenniferharris.com.au
Business Life
The Local Voice Since 1991
SEPTEMBER 2018 55