Pokemon GO Creators Are Being Sued for 'Inciting Trespassing'

A New Jersey man is filing a lawsuit against Niantic Labs, Nintendo and the Pokemon company for placing a Pokestop and Pokemon Gym in his backyard without his permission and "inciting trespassing", reports Polygon. The plantiff is Jeffrey Marder, who complains that strangers are lurking outside his home. The lawsuit is seeking class action status.

The suit states that "At least five individuals knocked on plaintiff's door and asked for access to plaintiff's backyard in order to ‘catch' Pokémon that the game had placed in Plaintiff's residence in West Orange, New Jersey — without plaintiff's permission." Marder claims this is interfering with his daily life and use and enjoyment of his property. He also claims that the companies are profiting off people trespassing on his property.

The suit states that "Niantic has encouraged Pokémon Go's millions of players to make unwanted incursions onto the properties of Plaintiff and other members of the class — a clear and ongoing invasion of their use and enjoyment of their land from which Defendants have profited and continue to profit." It makes references to several other incidents where Pokemon Go has caused trouble on various properties, including the incidents at the Holocaust Museum.

The suit intends to include all people in the United States whose property has been involved with Pokemon Go without authorization. Niantic, Nintendo and Pokemon will have 21 days to respond to the suit.

I don't know much about the legal system, but I have a feeling this suit isn't going to work out for the plantiff. You can enter Pokemon gyms and stops without entering the property in a lot of cases and the game warns you to respect other people's property. I don't see how the developer can be held responsible for how people use the game.

There's also a form for reporting inappropriate locations, so I think the most likely outcome is Niantic might end up being legally required to remove Pokestops and such on private property when it is requested. What do you think of the lawsuit? Is it fair? Should Niantic and company be held responsible?

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