Re:Class action lawsuit filed against Lenovo over Superfish
by tedunangst on Monday May 11, 2015 @03:46PM
(#9527372)
Fair questions. Civil engineering projects may not be the best analogy, because there are some special laws in that space, but maybe consider automobile recalls. How many people went to prison because a car's brakes or ignition didn't work? Criminal product liability is pretty rare afaik.
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Re:Class action lawsuit filed against Lenovo over Superfish
by mikeash on Monday May 11, 2015 @04:03PM
(#9527482)
Criminal proceedings against an entire company don't result in people going to jail, right? Holding people personally responsible is probably not appropriate with this, but holding the entire company criminally responsible and levying fines well in excess of actual damages seems reasonable.
Regarding automobile recalls, it looks like GM got hit with some fines for their ignition switch shenanigans, beyond actual damages. But it looks like this is a regulatory thing rather than a criminal thing. Maybe this is another place where special laws get in the way of generalizing.
Re:Class action lawsuit filed against Lenovo over Superfish
by CWuestefeld on Monday May 11, 2015 @04:29PM
(#9527628)
Criminal proceedings against an entire company don't result in people going to jail, right?
While it seems pretty rare for this to happen, the officers of a corporation can be held criminally liable for the actions of the corp.
Re:Class action lawsuit filed against Lenovo over Superfish
by dragonwriter on Monday May 11, 2015 @04:36PM
(#9527679)
They can be, but that allows criminal proceedings against the officer, it doesn't change that proceeding against the company, as such, cannot result in any individual going to jail, since the individual isn't the company (they are distinct legal persons) and one person can't be sent to prison based on another person being convicted of a crime.