By Elizabeth D. De Armond. 113 Penn St. L. Rev 1.
Federal privacy statutes purport to solidify norms for the privacy of our personal information, whether financial, medical, or other. Given the importance of privacy norms and the tradition of rights and remedies for privacy at the state level, states should seek to push their capacities to use laws, whether common or enacted, to protect their citizens to the very limits they can. Enforcement of social privacy norms, as embodied in laws state or federal, is necessary to protect personality and dignity. States can resume their traditional roles as protectors of their citizens by responding to increased threats to privacy through adapting common law torts or by enacting legislation; where these instruments provide enforcement through private causes of action, those protected by the instruments can vindicate their rights. More importantly, such remedies can deter violations to begin with, the ultimate aim of any privacy provision . . . [keep reading]