Eduardo E. Santacana 

One of the most rapidly evolving areas of law involves digital privacy, and you don’t get much bigger than Google.

Eduardo E. Santacana has been defending the tech giant for three years against charges that it secretly tracked millions of users who turned off its activity setting. The case is being closely watched by tech companies and digital users around the world: Rodriguez v. Google LLC, 3:20-cv-04688-RS (N.D. Cal., filed July 14, 2020).

The case started out with numerous types of privacy invasion claims, several of which Santacana and his team successfully obtained dismissals for, including a federal wiretap violation.

“We excised from the case allegations that Google had a secret code and was defrauding the public,” Santacana said. “What is left is an invasion of privacy tort and violation of a state computer crime statute.”

And Santacana is busy with other similar cases, including a class action that Google and other tech companies collect private health data through the Flo Health app and numerous lawsuits from state attorneys general that Google used deceptive practices to obtain user data.

“Most of my practice is privacy related but I like to do all kinds of general commercial litigation,” Santacana said. “There are busy dockets in Northern California with privacy class actions that a tech company has invaded someone’s privacy. It’s a relatively new area of law. Not that long ago, consumer fraud was the most popular class action.”

Santacana also likes to do civil rights cases and has teamed up with the ACLU to fight an alleged practice by Kern County judges to shepherd misdemeanor defendants through their arraignments without a lawyer. Instead, probation officers craft, convey, and negotiate plea offers.

“When the ACLU first presented the case to us, I wondered if it was possibly true this could be going on in California or any state in 2023,” he said. “I don’t know why this has escaped notice.”

The case is in the early stages, with a writ pending before the Court of Appeal to force judges in Kern County to recuse themselves.

Other social justice matters Santacana has taken on include pro bono work in immigration asylum cases, including people who have fled the Taliban in Afghanistan.

“One thing I’m always doing is representing people in the immigration system; I find it fulfilling,” he said.

—Tori Richards