TBG Insurance Services Corp. v. Superior Court

An employer provided two computers for an employee’s use, one for the office, the other to permit the employee to work at home. The employee, who had signed his employer’s “electronic and telephone equipment policy statement” and agreed in writing that his computers could be monitored by his employer, was terminated for misuse of his office computer. After the employee sued the employer for wrongful termination, the employer demanded production of the home computer. The employee refused to produce the computer and the trial court refused to compel production. On the employer’s petition, we conclude that, given the employee’s consent to his employer’s monitoring of both computers, the employee had no reasonable expectation of privacy when he used the home computer for personal matters. We issue the writ as prayed.

Facts

For about 12 years, Robert Zieminski worked as a senior executive for TBG Insurance Services Corporation. In the course of his employment, Zieminski used two computers owned by TBG, one at the office, the other at his residence. Zieminski signed TBG’s “electronic and telephone equipment policy statement” in which he agreed, among other things, that he…