Court in Latvia considers thumbs up emoji as written consent

A court in Latvia has recognised the thumbs-up emoji as written consent.

Delfi reported this, citing the court decision.

The case concerns a complaint of an employee of a company about his dismissal.

Through a message on the Slack platform, the company's management ordered the man to report to the office on April 6, 2022.

He responded to the message with a thumbs-up emoji but did not show up.

In the lawsuit, the man stated that he was working remotely under the terms of his contract.

The employment contract stipulated that the plaintiff could work at any address of his choice but was obliged to report to the company's office after receiving prior notice and written consent from the management.

The employee claimed €6.400 in compensation for lost wages and almost €58 000 for the six months of work after the incident and unused vacation. The man also sought compensation for "non-pecuniary damage" in the amount of €5,000.

The claim was only partially satisfied. The employer is obliged to pay €6,364 to the plaintiff, as well as €978 for court costs.

The court based its decision, in particular, on the Cambridge Dictionary definition of a thumbs-up emoji as "a sign of approval."

It will be recalled that a court in Canada fined a farmer C$82,000 for a similar offense. The man responded with a thumbs-up emoji to a message about an agreement but did not fulfil it.