# Parents lose settlement due to daughter's Facebook. Legal?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-lose-settlement-due-to-daughters-facebook-legal/682886>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [March 5, 2014, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-lose-settlement-due-to-daughters-facebook-legal/682886 "2014-03-05T01:20:47Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 3

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\
**Post date:** [March 7, 2014, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-lose-settlement-due-to-daughters-facebook-legal/682886/41 "2014-03-07T19:14:30Z")

</div>

> [@PunditLisa](#):
>
> No, per the agreement he voluntarily signed, he wasn’t allowed to tell \*anyone \*other than his spouse about the outcome of the case. Period. It didn’t say, “And if you DO tell anyone else, you have to get them to pinky swear that they won’t tell anyone else.”

Read the part of the thread you’re responding to again. You’re misinterpreting it.

The initial question was: What if he told his wife, and his wife told his daughter? Then he didn’t break the confidentiality agreement (he only told his wife).

The response was: No, even though he was allowed to tell his wife, he would be required to tell her that she couldn’t tell anyone else, or it would break the confidentiality agreement.

The question isn’t whether you can tell someone you’re not allowed to tell if you make them promise not to tell. The question is whether telling someone you _are_ allowed to tell gives them freedom to tell others. And the answer is no.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\
**Post date:** [March 7, 2014, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-lose-settlement-due-to-daughters-facebook-legal/682886/42 "2014-03-07T19:27:07Z")

</div>

> [@outlierrn](#):
>
> Let’s reverse it, say they cut the deal, and the institution told it’s accountant to cut the check, but the accountant said to themselves ‘I never liked that bitch’, and diverts the money to an untraceable charity. Suppose, further, that the institution _cannot_ come up with another 80k, should the father still have to keep his mouth shut, still protect the institution from embarrassment?

In that case the institution breached the agreement by noncompliance (nonpayment). No agreement, no confidentiality.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\
**Post date:** [March 8, 2014, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-lose-settlement-due-to-daughters-facebook-legal/682886/43 "2014-03-08T09:04:33Z")

</div>

> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#):
>
> In that case the institution breached the agreement by noncompliance (nonpayment). No agreement, no confidentiality.

exactly

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\
**Post date:** [March 8, 2014, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-lose-settlement-due-to-daughters-facebook-legal/682886/44 "2014-03-08T17:20:05Z")

</div>

> [@Ferret\_Herder](#):
>
> First of all, how is she going to know her parents have more money? Does she have access to their financial records? Her dad is working at another headmaster job; it’s not like they were destitute and about ready to lose their house until a sudden windfall came into their lives and made itself really fucking obvious.
> 
> Second, perhaps he could have discussed his concerns with his attorney beforehand and had “or offspring” written in. Alternately he could have claimed that his lawyer insists that he can’t talk about the case anymore, to anyone, ever ‘and that’s all behind us now, dear’ etc. etc.

I don’t know much about this particular case, but I damn sure would’ve noticed the difference 80k would’ve made in our family’s life.

In this case, likely not since prep school headmasters average around $200k in salary.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/parents-lose-settlement-due-to-daughters-facebook-legal/682886.md?page=2)