Toronto Electricians and Electrical Contractors

Win! Landmark Seventh Circuit Decision Says Fourth Amendment Applies to Smart Meter Data The Seventh Circuit just handed down a landmark opinion , ruling 3-0 that the Fourth Amendment protects energy-consumption data collected by smart meters. Smart meters collect energy usage data at high frequencies — typically every 5, 15, or 30 minutes — and therefore know exactly how much electricity is being used, and when , in any given household. The court recognized that data from these devices reveals intimate details about what’s going on inside the home that would otherwise be unavailable to the government without a physical search. The court held that residents have a reasonable expectation of privacy in this data and that the government’s access of it constitutes a “search.” This case, Naperville Smart Meter Awareness v. City of Naperville , is the first case addressing whether the Fourth Amendment protects smart meter data. Courts have in the past held that the Fourth Amendment ...

Working on commercial real estate, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about buildings and what makes a commercial building attractive to tenants. To answer the question, I think we can take some queues from destination retailers. For example, why would someone go to a retail store these days when products are at our fingertips online? Or, why would someone make the long drive to a destination retailer when they could easily purchase from the comfort of home? As commercial office buildings lose tenants, workers move to home offices, and millennial workers upend the expectations of the traditional workplace, real estate professionals and investors are asking themselves some of these same questions. How can they make their real estate or workplace a destination- a place where people want to go to work? People enjoying a modern workspace. First, let’s look at the definition of Destination Retail: Destination Retail –  It refers to a particular retail store that the customer seeks ou...