Fighting Subpoenas in a Sharing Economy | Practical Law

Fighting Subpoenas in a Sharing Economy | Practical Law

Online lodging company Airbnb's recent refusal to provide information on thousands of its users in response to a subpoena issued by New York's Attorney General highlights the difficulty that parties face when trying to enforce a subpoena if its scope is considered overreaching.

Fighting Subpoenas in a Sharing Economy

Practical Law Legal Update 0-566-2565 (Approx. 4 pages)

Fighting Subpoenas in a Sharing Economy

by Practical Law Litigation
Law stated as of 28 Apr 2014 • USA (National/Federal)
Online lodging company Airbnb's recent refusal to provide information on thousands of its users in response to a subpoena issued by New York's Attorney General highlights the difficulty that parties face when trying to enforce a subpoena if its scope is considered overreaching.
In today's sharing economy, where everything from venture capital funding to vacation rentals are crowdsourced, companies increasingly face the risk of having enormous amounts of data subpoenaed by regulators, competitors and other litigants. The latest real-world example illustrating the gravity of this risk is the New York Attorney General's investigation into illegal short-term rentals booked through Airbnb, a website that helps people rent out their homes to guests, usually for only a few days. For many residential buildings, New York law does not permit renting out entire apartments for less than 30 days.
The AG subpoenaed user records on approximately 15,000 New York residents who rent out their apartments through Airbnb to identify any residents violating New York state housing laws. The company has refused to turn over the data, claiming that the subpoena is overreaching with its extremely broad scope seeking private, confidential information. On April 22, 2014, the Supreme Court of the State of New York heard oral arguments from both sides on the matter.
Practical Law has several resources explaining how to fight and enforce subpoenas:
  • For a description of the various ways a party can object to (or move to quash) a subpoena, the consequences of failing to timely object to (or comply with) an otherwise valid subpoena and how to appeal a decision compelling or denying the discovery sought by a subpoena under FRCP 45, see Practice Note, Subpoenas: Responding to a Subpoena.
  • For an explanation of how to enforce a subpoena and how to appeal a court order granting or denying the discovery sought in a subpoena, see Practice Note, Subpoenas: Enforcing a Subpoena.
  • For a description of key issues parties should consider when they use subpoenas to obtain evidence in federal civil litigation under FRCP 45, see Federal Subpoena Checklist.
Practical Law also has a series of resources devoted to guidance on subpoena practice in New York State, including Practice Note, Subpoenas in New York: Drafting a Subpoena, Practice Note, Subpoenas in New York: Responding to a Subpoena and Practice Note, Subpoenas in New York: Enforcing a Subpoena.