Bristol University Press
8 The Easy Case for Viewers’ Liability: Child Pornography and Apportionment of Liability
Abstract
This chapter proposes to understand child pornography as an extreme and complicated instance of NCII. It (1) establishes viewers’ liability for viewing child pornography under privacy law (as distinct from bespoke statutory provisions), (2) examines whether viewing child pornography could be considered as ‘acting in concert’ and hence lead to full liability of each viewer to the victim’s entire damage from the viewing of their abuse (and possibly also from their initial abuse); (3) argues that the holding in the US Supreme Court in Paroline v United States is compatible with demand-based liability: A viewer could and should be liable to the victim’s injury from the initial abuse, as long as the production of the child pornography was (also) motivated by the prospect of distribution. However, the viewer should not be liable to victims whose images he did not view for harm from either the initial abuse or the circulation of images.
Abstract
This chapter proposes to understand child pornography as an extreme and complicated instance of NCII. It (1) establishes viewers’ liability for viewing child pornography under privacy law (as distinct from bespoke statutory provisions), (2) examines whether viewing child pornography could be considered as ‘acting in concert’ and hence lead to full liability of each viewer to the victim’s entire damage from the viewing of their abuse (and possibly also from their initial abuse); (3) argues that the holding in the US Supreme Court in Paroline v United States is compatible with demand-based liability: A viewer could and should be liable to the victim’s injury from the initial abuse, as long as the production of the child pornography was (also) motivated by the prospect of distribution. However, the viewer should not be liable to victims whose images he did not view for harm from either the initial abuse or the circulation of images.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- Series Editor’s Preface x
- Introduction 1
- Setting the Ground: The Intermediary Liability Debate and Framing Issues 13
- First Principles and Occupiers’ Liability: The Case against Immunity 28
- Property and Privacy: The Case for Strict Liability 54
- Property and Privacy: Objections and Possible Extensions 72
- The Policy Debate: Uniqueness of Harm from NCII 86
- The Policy Debate: Freedom of Expression and Financial Costs of Filtering 110
- The Easy Case for Viewers’ Liability: Child Pornography and Apportionment of Liability 132
- Viewers’ Liability: Intention and Objective Fault 157
- The Power of Property: Strict Liability for Viewing NCII 175
- Scope of Liability for Breaches of Privacy 194
- Is Suing Viewers Practicable? 214
- Conclusion 224
- References 227
- Index 256
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents vii
- Acknowledgements viii
- Series Editor’s Preface x
- Introduction 1
- Setting the Ground: The Intermediary Liability Debate and Framing Issues 13
- First Principles and Occupiers’ Liability: The Case against Immunity 28
- Property and Privacy: The Case for Strict Liability 54
- Property and Privacy: Objections and Possible Extensions 72
- The Policy Debate: Uniqueness of Harm from NCII 86
- The Policy Debate: Freedom of Expression and Financial Costs of Filtering 110
- The Easy Case for Viewers’ Liability: Child Pornography and Apportionment of Liability 132
- Viewers’ Liability: Intention and Objective Fault 157
- The Power of Property: Strict Liability for Viewing NCII 175
- Scope of Liability for Breaches of Privacy 194
- Is Suing Viewers Practicable? 214
- Conclusion 224
- References 227
- Index 256
