Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California
I was just browsing the classmates.com website and looked at my high schools yearbooks they have online only to find out one of the ones they have scanned is MINE. With all of my personal notes from my classmates in it and everything. I NEVER sold them that yearbook. My house was burglarized years ago and I haven't seen the yearbook since. This is a legal lawsuit, right? I am MAD!!!!
3 Answers from Attorneys
Sometimes the law just cannot come up with a remedy for you. If the website obtained the book legally the best you can do ins ask them to remove it.
You may have some sort of claim but you have to prove damages. But against whom? The person who wronged you is the one that stole the book in the first place.. Good luck
As Freddy Fender sang, now your secret love is no secret anymore.
It's very unlikely that Classmates.com either stole your yearbook or knew it was stolen. It most likely acted in good faith, believing that whoever provided the book was its legal owner. What's more, you don't own the copyright on the book's contents. There may be a privacy issue here, but I doubt Classmates is at fault. It's hard to see how you could sue them successfully.
Classmates might be willing to help you track down your yearbook. You may be able to get it back that way and identify the thief. (Of course, the thief may not be the person who has it now.) So your best bet may be to treat the company as an ally rather than an enemy.