So Dana Snay, a Miami teenager, is probably in big trouble right now. As the Miami Herald reports, an appeals court just tossed out her father’s $80,000 age-discrimination settlement because she violated the confidentiality agreement by bragging about it on Facebook. The offending post:
Mama and Papa Snay won the case against Gulliver. Gulliver is now officially paying for my vacation to Europe this summer. SUCK IT.
“TMI,” cried Gulliver’s lawyers. Patrick Snay had served as headmaster for the Gulliver Preparatory School for years when they chose not to renew his contract. He sued and settled, but only on the condition that he and his wife keep the “terms and existence” of the agreement private. So the infractions here were twofold: Snay divulging the deal to his daughter and his daughter broadcasting it to all her “friends.”
What can we learn from their misfortune, fellow millennials? Do not boast. Do not mess with attorneys. Do not overshare on social media, especially when you’re not even going on a European vacation. (Snay was joking.) In fairness, secrets, especially happy ones, have always been difficult to keep—throwing Facebook into the mix just raises the stakes. (Something about that hypnotically soothing blue banner and gentle invitation—what’s on your mind?—wreaks havoc on your inhibitions.) Maybe, in fact, it’s not Dana’s fault, but Facebook’s fault. Facebook: You should pay up. What’s $3,478 per word to Mark Zuckerberg?
