Look at this plane that just landed at Centennial Airport. This plane, this tail number, is registered with Taylor Swift. And the question on everyone's mind, how is Taylor Swift going to make it to the game?
Taylor Swift, as the artist, makes her way to the Super Bowl literally crossing oceans. Taylor Swift is in the news again. Celebrities.
Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift.
Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift.
Taylor Swift. There's been a lot of legal news lately surrounding Taylor Swift because of the cease and desist letter that she sent the 21 year old college student Jack Sweeney regarding him tracking her private jet. And this has led to a lot of speculation as to what is legally permissible and what is not, especially when we talk about the right of privacy and celebrities.
So I'm here to break it all down for you in this long form video to discuss whether or not Taylor Swift can actually sue this college student. for an invasion of privacy, harassment, or even stalking. My name is Ugo Lord. I've been a licensed attorney for the past 10 years, and I make these videos to make the law easier and more entertaining to understand.
So make sure you hit that subscribe button and make sure you watch the end of this video for my final analysis on this fascinating case. So in case you've been living under a rock, Taylor Swift has been everywhere in these past few weeks. She just made history at the Grammys, being the very first person to win album of the year for a fourth...
time. She's also been all over the sports world because her boyfriend just played at the Super Bowl in my hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada. So when the news broke that she sent a cease and desist letter to this 21-year-old Florida college student, of course it made headline news. So let's discuss whether her cease and desist letter has any teeth behind it.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, as an attorney, I have to give a disclosure, and that is I am a fan of Taylor Swift. I think she's an incredibly talented woman. I've been to her concerts in person.
It is an electric electric experience. Not only that, but my friends who know me know that I have a personal connection when it comes to Taylor Swift. With that said, ladies and gentlemen, my job as an attorney is to discuss the law and whether or not she has any legal recourse when it comes to publishing the facts concerning her live traveling on her private jet.
So let's start with some breaking news, ladies and gentlemen. Taylor Swift has actually just sold her private jet. Now, when we talk about public scrutiny, Taylor Swift has been criticized heavily when it comes to her use of her private jet.
In fact, she was even named the highest carbon... emitter from the use of her private jet while she's on tour flying back and forth. Now it's important to mention that her team says she also loans out her jet. So even though her plane is being used, she says it's not always her using it. But yes, she was named the number one most carbon emitter because of the number of flights that she's taken on her private jet.
So it comes as no surprise that it's breaking news that she sold her private jet. But ladies and gentlemen, homegirl has two jets. Yes, that's what happens when you're a billionaire.
And yes, I believe she deserves her billionaire status. because she made a billion dollars from her talent alone. She didn't do any side hustle or side business.
In fact, there's a great Forbes article that you guys should read about how she became a billionaire on her own without a side company. But I digress. So even though she sold one of her private jets, she still has another one.
And the one that she has is actually her larger private jet. And that is still the subject of her cease and desist letter. Now I've read this December 22nd cease and desist letter.
Now, if you have no idea what I'm talking about when it comes to this cease and desist letter, letter. Let me go ahead and explain. 21-year-old college student Jack Sweeney operates these social media accounts where he tracks the private jet movements of the ultra wealthy. In fact, he was in the news several years ago for tracking Elon Musk's jet and Elon Musk also sent a cease and desist letter to him as well, but he didn't stop doing it.
Eventually, Elon Musk bought Twitter and banned his account. Now he has another Elon Musk account where he publishes the information with the 24-hour. hour delay. In fact, ladies and gentlemen, there is actually some reports out there saying that one of the reasons why Elon Musk bought Twitter, because he was so infuriated by this Twitter account that's run by Jack. In fact, Elon Musk offered Jack $5,000 if he would stop publishing his flight information.
And the capitalists that Jack is responded by saying that he would get rid of the account for $50,000 instead of $5,000. But ladies and gentlemen, it's not just Elon Musk and Taylor Swift. Jack also tracks the- the private jet movements of many ultra wealthy people, many billionaires, such as Russian oligarchs, politicians, even Vladimir Putin himself is being tracked by this young man. And of course, Taylor Swift is not alone because he also attracts celebrities such as Drake and Kim Kardashian.
So this may lead you to ask, how is he even able to find this information? Well, ladies and gentlemen, the information is public. In 2020, the FAA mandated that most aircraft, including private jets of a certain size that fly at a certain altitude must be equipped with a system that is known as the Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast, otherwise known as ADS-B for short. The ADS-B is essentially a system that sends out a ping approximately every three seconds that shows where the aircraft is located. This is to allow other aircraft to know its position, the ground...
control to know its position, as well as third parties to be able to track the position of these aircraft for overall safety. Unfortunately, many of you will be familiar with the Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 that disappeared. Now, if the ADS-B system were working, we would have been able to track exactly where that plane was.
So this is essentially a safety measure to control not only traffic in the air, on the ground, but also to allow third parties to be able to locate where an aircraft is at all times and it's required on all private jets of this size. Now this information is in fact reported to the FAA. Now because this is an unencrypted public system, it allows anyone with the tools to read that to be able to track essentially where any jet is.
It's not just about private jets, it also applies to commercial jets as well. as well, it allows you to track them in real time, down essentially to the second. Now what Jack has done is quite interesting. Now these third parties that have the machinery to interpret this system, upload that system publicly, because again, it is public information.
Now what Jack has cleverly done is use these third party systems to gather this public information, and then is able to pinpoint which jet belongs to which celebrity. Essentially what he's done is gathered this public information and make it easier for a consumer to understand that. that this jet belongs to this person and they're flying at this speed, at this altitude, and they're going to this destination. Ladies and gentlemen, it's all public information, but the way that it's being compiled together is what now allows people to target each individual person that owns that airplane. Now, it's almost impossible to tell who is actually in the aircraft, but you are able to tell who owns the aircraft because again, that information is reported to the FAA because ownership information again is a public.
record that is disclosed to the FAA. And therefore, Jack is using that to determine that Elon's jet is traveling from Austin, Texas to Las Vegas, Nevada for the Super Bowl. And that is what Taylor Swift's team has a problem with, ladies and gentlemen.
You see, Taylor Swift's team is saying that the way that he's compiled this information is an invasion of Taylor's privacy. In fact, they even go on to say that it's a form of stalking and harassment by publicly releasing this compiled information, which makes it easy for individuals to... track her every movement when she's on that jet. In fact, Taylor Swift talks in the cease and desist letter about how she has suffered from stalkers in the past.
One of those stalkers was even arrested outside of her Manhattan apartment. So her letters from her lawyer describe her as being in fear for her safety. And with this information that Jack is putting out there, making Taylor even more in fear of her safety because her every movement is now being published by Jack.
What makes this letter very interesting is that her lawyers go even further to say that Jack's harassment. is in violation of state law. So that's what I wanna talk about. The letter first starts talking about Taylor's rights to privacy. And it's true that in the United States of America, we have a constitutional right to privacy.
Even if you're a celebrity, you still also have a constitutional right to privacy. Now, it is diminished when you're a public figure because essentially you're putting yourself out there, but public figures still have a constitutional right to privacy. Even politicians have a constitutional right to privacy, although also diminished as well. So let's talk about the- right to privacy.
There are four distinct causes of actions when it comes to a violation of one's privacy. Now, the first one is the unwarranted appropriation of the name or likeness of an individual. Essentially, what that means is that you're using Taylor Swift's name or image without her permission to make some money.
Now, that doesn't apply in this case, and the lawyers are not alleging that, even though Taylor Swift has also been in the news because some AI was circulating inappropriate photos of Taylor Swift that were actually AI generated. It wasn't her. It was a deep fake of her.
And that was in the news recently as well. That's a misappropriation of someone's image, which violates their right to privacy. Another invasion of privacy action is something known as false light.
Essentially, that's exactly what it sounds. It's painting someone in a false light. There's a famous case where a photographer took a picture of a student and published that picture with the headline that indicated that students were doing drugs.
Now, this case became famous because essentially the student that was in the photo was saying, hey, I don't do drugs. Well, the photographer alleged, well, listen, I'm- I was just taking pictures of students and I'm just saying that some students are doing drugs. I wasn't saying that you were doing drugs.
But then the student sued saying, by posting this picture of me with the headline saying that some students are doing drugs, makes it seem like I am one of the some students that's doing drugs. That, ladies and gentlemen, is false light. And again, that doesn't apply in this case because essentially, Jack Sweeney is posting real live updates of Taylor Swift's private jet location. So long as Jack is not saying that Taylor Swift is actually inside.
the jet on her way to some strip club, then it wouldn't be false-liked. So this leads to the third potential invasion of privacy lawsuit, which is public disclosure of private facts. Now this is a good one, ladies and gentlemen, because even celebrities are allowed to have a private life. meaning that a celebrity's private information must remain private.
And if you publicly disclose a celebrity's private information, then that, in fact, could be a potential lawsuit for invasion of privacy. But of course, the issue, ladies and gentlemen, is that it has to be a public... disclosure of private facts. As I previously mentioned, Jack is compiling public facts, putting it all together and releasing those public facts in a way that's easier for the audience to understand. It's not a public disclosure of private facts, it's a public disclosure of public facts.
And therefore, this tort wouldn't apply. Essentially, ladies and gentlemen, anyone can do this. Anyone who has the time or the willingness to want to do this can do this because it's public information.
So based on that legal analysis alone, ladies and gentlemen, Taylor Swift's team would not be able to file a lawsuit under this cause of action because these are not private facts. These are public facts. So then this leads us to the final cause of action for invasion of privacy, which is intrusion upon seclusion.
Now, intrusion upon seclusion essentially means your right to be left alone. Even celebrities, although they are public figures, have a right to their own seclusion, their own solitude. And an argument can be made. can be made by Taylor Swift's legal team that by publishing this information, it intrudes upon her seclusion to be left alone.
But of course, the issue once again, ladies and gentlemen, is that this information is public. Yes, you have the right to be left alone, but other people still have the right to report on public information about you, especially if you're a public figure and even more especially if you're a politician. Let me give you an example, ladies and gentlemen.
When Jay-Z and Beyonce purchased that mega mansion, it made the news and when it made the news of course the address of that home was also in the news why because that is public information when you buy a house and you record it with your County that is recorded publicly which means anyone can access County records because it's public information and they'll know exactly where she lives so even though you're publishing it making it easier for the audience to know where Jay Z and Beyonce lives it doesn't mean that it's suddenly now an intrusion upon seclusion because that information was already public. Essentially, the publisher made it easier for people to find, but it still wasn't difficult to find to begin with. Now, I say this with a caveat, ladies and gentlemen, because I've been online posting videos now for about two years.
And since then, ladies and gentlemen, I've become popular. I wouldn't call myself a celebrity at all, but I would say that I am popular. Now, when I purchased my home in California, I made the mistake of talking about how happy I was to live in Hollywood Hills.
Someone went and found out where I lived and they showed up on my door. And yes, it was. extremely unsettling.
It was very, very scary. But the question is, is it actionable? Now, the person who showed up at my door got that information from some sort of online source, and that online source must have got that information from the public records.
Now, as creepy as that sounds, it's still a public record. So publishing it is not necessarily actionable without some other elements on top of it. So this is what leads to the other part of the letter that is most important, which is Taylor Swift's attorneys accusing Jack of stalking and harassing behavior.
This. is where things get interesting. Now, remember how we talked before about that stalker who was arrested outside of Taylor Swift's home? It is true that if you take all of your actions together, it can be considered stalking.
That is, if you go and get information from the public and you act on that public information to cause someone fear for their safety, then yes, that could be considered stalking. Essentially, it is a targeting of an individual at the point where it becomes a risk to their safety and security. And that is where it leads to the level of...
level of stalking. So of course the question becomes, is Jack Sweeney stalking Taylor Swift? I'm going to go ahead and paraphrase for you the federal law regarding cyber stalking. Ladies and gentlemen, federal law describes federal cyber stalking as anyone who intends to kill, injure, harass, intimidate, or place under surveillance with the intent to kill, injure, harass, or intimidate could in fact be found guilty of cyber stalking.
if they cause or attempt to cause or if it would be reasonably expected to cause substantial emotional distress. That's a lot of legal jargon, so let's break it down what it means. Now, I think it's pretty safe to say that this 21-year-old college student is not intending to kill, injure, or intimidate Taylor Swift or any of the other individuals that he's monitoring with this flight system. So this boils down again to whether or not it would be considered harassing by publicly disclosing this information. Many states don't- define this differently, but let's focus on Florida where Jack Sweeney is located.
Florida says that to harass means to engage in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that causes substantial emotional distress in such person and serves no legitimate purpose. That ladies and gentlemen is where the rubber meets the road because Jack Sweeney is saying his work does serve a legitimate purpose and he says that legitimate purpose is to track the carbon emissions of these billionaires using their private jet. jets.
And you guys know I love Taylor Swift, but she has been under fire for years due to her use of multiple private jets. And yes, she was named the number one most carbon emitter. So Jack is saying that by tracking this information, it essentially holds her accountable for her use of these private jets for both her personal and business purposes.
Jack also says he's not targeting Taylor Swift herself, but he does this for many people, including Elon Musk, Kim Kardashian, Drake, Warren Buffett, big celebrities that are using their private jet. That's, Jack is tracking them. So he's saying that I'm not targeting you specifically, Taylor.
I'm doing this for a wide array of individuals. Long story short, ladies and gentlemen, and come close for this one. Based on my legal analysis of this case, not considering my personal affinity for her, I'm looking at this case up, down, left, and sideways. And there's no doubt that if someone was posting your location every three seconds, you would be uncomfortable, especially if you are currently being stalked.
stalked and harassed by other people because now it makes it easier for other people to find you. But that's the difference, ladies and gentlemen. She is being stalked and harassed by other people, not Jack Sweeney, according to the law. There's not enough information to indicate that this 21-year-old college student is targeting her specifically for the purpose of trying to harass or stalk her, but instead compiling public information and releasing that already public information in a way.
that he says holds her accountable for the way that she uses her private jet. Now, that doesn't mean that this cannot turn into harassment later or turn into stalking later. But as it stands, compiling public information in a way that is easier for the public to understand that information does not in itself make this an invasion of privacy because it's not private. The solution, ladies and gentlemen, is for the government to pass the laws to require the.
FAA to make this ADS-B system encrypted, make it private. Because if it's now private information, then the disclosing of that would be a public disclosure of private facts. But it's not private facts, it's public facts. And as long as it remains public facts, it allows this college student to have a strong legal footing to say, no, he's not invading her privacy, harassing her, stalking her, or intimidating her.
And ladies and gentlemen, Gentlemen, it's also important to note that Jack Sweeney was not the only person tracking Taylor Swift's jet. In fact, when she flew from Tokyo back to America to make it in time for the Super Bowl, over 10,000 people were also tracking her jet. It's just not even feasible to think that you would sue over 10,000 people that are publicly tracking your information. And as a popular person who definitely would not want my information out there published every three seconds, I don't see where in the law she has a strength. strong probability to win this case, unless, unless she does something else, which she doesn't allege in her letter.
And I'm again, trying to keep this video as neutral as possible. So I'm not going to tell you what that is because it's not being alleged and I don't want the media to pick up on this and it become a bigger thing. But unless their legal team is trying to keep it close to the vest and not... display all their cards. I don't see how based on this cease and desist letter.
they have a strong likelihood of winning the case. But to Taylor's legal team, if you're watching, hit me up because I have some ideas. I have some ideas.
All right, ladies and gentlemen, there you have it. My lawyer's reaction. It makes this young college student likely not liable for invasion of privacy, stalking, or harassment. If you guys enjoyed this deep dive into the law, please make sure to hit that like and subscribe button for more long form video on my lawyer's reaction. Thank you guys so much for watching and I'll see you very soon.
Thank you.