Canadian Hospital Employee Has Nonconsensual Nude Photo Lawsuit Tossed
A hospital employee, who claims his ex-girlfriend shared his naked selfie without his consent, has been told that his nude photo is not protected by privacy laws because he took the picture while at work.
Instead, the man’s selfie, which was taken while he was alone in a room at work with a door stopper holding the door closed, could be interpreted as an indecent exhibition in public.
The case reveals how location alone can undermine privacy protections for photos regardless of whether the images are shared without consent.
According to a report by CBC, the hospital employee in British Columbia, Canada, filed a complaint through the B.C. Civil Resolution Tribunal under the Intimate Images Protection Act (IIPA) after his ex-girlfriend allegedly shared his nude selfie with others without permission.
The act allows people who’ve had nude photos of themselves shared by others without their permission, among other things, to seek financial compensation through legal channels. The hospital employee was seeking $5,000 in damages from his ex, who is also his coworker at a B.C. hospital.
The man told the B.C. Civil Resolution Tribunal that he had taken and sent a fully nude selfie to his then-girlfriend while they were still in a relationship. He said he took the photo alone during a night shift at the hospital where he worked. According to him, no patients were nearby, and the area was quiet. He claimed he used a wooden doorstop to keep the door shut, posted a “Do Not Disturb” sign, and drew the curtain for privacy.
About a year later, his employer received a complaint alleging inappropriate conduct at a clinical site, along with a copy of the nude photo taken at work. The man believed his ex-girlfriend shared the photo with his employer, stating that only she and one other former partner had the image.
According to CBC, his ex-girlfriend denied sharing the photo and argued that he had violated workplace rules by taking it during his shift in a hospital room that others could have accessed.
In April, the B.C. Civil Resolution Tribunal issued a decision on the case and dismissed the man’s complaint. It ruled that because the photo was taken at work, it did not qualify as an “intimate image” under the Intimate Images Protection Act (IIPA), and therefore he wasn’t entitled to compensation. The tribunal added that the hospital employee’s image could also be seen as indecent exposure under the Criminal Code, and therefore the man did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy.
The tribunal also found there wasn’t enough evidence to determine which one of the hospital worker’s ex-girlfriends shared the nude photo but noted that it seemed to have only been sent to the man’s employer.
Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.
