A YouTuber has filed a lawsuit against Google, and they filmed themselves filing the complaint in-person.
On July 5, DaShay “Shay” Hall filed a lawsuit against YouTube, LLC, and turned it into a live streaming event for one of his channels, The Real Late Night Crew. The livestream starts out with Hall sitting in his vehicle outside of the court house in Santa Clara, CA.
He continues to stream as he walks into the courthouse, goes through security, and interacts with the clerk. Hall is even seen engaging with the live chat as he waits for the clerk to process the filing. He then proceeds back out to his car to discuss with viewers for 30 minutes. In less than 24 hours, the video has amassed over 2,000 views.
The Lawsuit…
In the complaint, Hall alleges the platform mishandled copyright takedown notices, ignored evidence of false claims, allowed continued harassment, and terminated his channels without a valid reason. Hall claims these actions significantly harmed his business, reputation, and personal well-being.
There are over 100 pages (😱) of exhibits attached that include copies of alleged emails, chats, social media exchanges, DMCA filings, FBI notices, and so much more.
The lawsuit details a series of events starting in April 2024, when Hall says he was subjected to a racially charged attack by another user, MONEYBOY TR3Y, that included posting pictures of Hall’s wife. The complaint alleges the harassment was targeting their interracial marriage. Based on other videos posted on MONEYBOY TR3Y’s YouTube channel, there’s been an on-going dispute between the two.
Hall reported the incident to YouTube, but claims the platform’s response was inadequate. Shortly after, Hall was hit with a wave of false copyright claims, which he says YouTube failed to properly address despite evidence provided by Hall.
Hall alleges that YouTube allowed the harassment to continue, even after he repeatedly reported it and provided evidence. The harassment escalated to threats against Hall and his family, and even included doxxing. Hall claims he reported these threats to YouTube, but the platform took no action.
In June 2024, YouTube terminated all of Hall’s channels without warning or justification, according to the lawsuit. This caused Hall significant financial and reputational harm, as his YouTube channels were his primary source of income. Although YouTube later reinstated two of Hall’s channels, the damage had already been done.
Hall’s lawsuit accuses YouTube of negligence, breach of contract, tortious interference with contractual relations, tortious interference with prospective economic advantage, and secondary copyright infringement. He is seeking compensatory and statutory damages, reinstatement of his YouTube channels, and an injunction against future false copyright claims.
Not the best move…
Hall’s decision to live stream as he walked into the courthouse and engaged with security and court personnel wasn’t the best decision. In doing all of this, it appears that Hall violated General Order 58, which regulates possession and use of electronic devices in the courthouse.
Photography and video and audio recording are prohibited in the common areas of the courthouse (i.e. the corridors and other areas outside the courtrooms) as well as in the courtrooms. Photography and interviews are permitted outside the building and in the Media Center only.
The rule does state that exceptions to this prohibition may be authorized with express written permission of the Chief Judge. However, it is unlikely that such permission would be granted for the purpose of live streaming oneself entering the courthouse to file a complaint. It’s unclear if Hall had received any such permission.
The lawsuit is Hall v. YouTube, LLC, 3:24-cv-04071, (N.D. Cal.), filed on July 5, 2024.
The livestream is embedded below.
The 140-page complaint is below. Without the 32 exhibits, it runs 26 pages.