A committee of federal judges has recommended that monitoring of computers in the judicial branch be continued, but that notice of the monitoring be given to all employees first. The committee convened after a group of federal judges in the Ninth Circuit disabled the monitoring program because they felt it was an illegal invasion of privacy. The Judicial Conference of the United States, a body headed by Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, will vote on the recommendations on September 11. Employers are watching the vote carefully as the Supreme Court has not yet ruled on this issue and the vote may influence future federal decisions.
See "Monitoring of Judiciary Computers is Backed", Neil A. Lewis, The New York Times, August 13, 2001