Plain-English Definitions for Attorneys & Law Firms
Internet, SEO, and digital marketing disputes come with their own specialized vocabulary, and misunderstanding a single term can lead to an inaccurate reading of the evidence. This glossary defines the terms that come up most often in Bill Hartzer's expert witness work, in plain English, so counsel and their teams can work through technical evidence and expert reports with confidence.
Glossary of Terms
Expert Witness
A qualified professional retained to provide opinion testimony on technical matters outside the general knowledge of a judge or jury, based on specialized knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education.
Daubert Standard
The reliability standard, derived from Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals and codified in Federal Rule of Evidence 702, that courts use to determine whether expert testimony is sufficiently reliable to be admitted.
SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
The practice of improving a website's visibility in unpaid, organic search engine results through technical, content, and link-related improvements.
Manual Action
A penalty applied to a website by a human reviewer at a search engine, distinct from an automatic algorithmic ranking change, typically for violating published webmaster guidelines.
UDRP (Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy)
An ICANN-administered arbitration process allowing a trademark holder to challenge a domain name registration alleged to have been registered and used in bad faith.
WHOIS / RDAP
Protocols and databases used to look up registration information for a domain name, including registrant, registrar, and registration date data; RDAP (Registration Data Access Protocol) is the modern successor to the older WHOIS protocol.
Domain Theft
The unauthorized transfer of control over a domain name away from its rightful owner, often accomplished through compromised account credentials or social engineering.
Click Fraud
Illegitimate clicks on pay-per-click advertisements generated by bots, competitors, or other bad actors with no genuine interest in the advertised product or service.
PPC (Pay-Per-Click)
An advertising model, most commonly associated with Google Ads, in which advertisers pay a fee each time their ad is clicked.
Attribution
The process of assigning credit for a conversion (a sale, lead, or other desired action) to specific marketing channels or touchpoints in a customer's journey.
Defamation
A false statement of fact, published to a third party, that damages a person's or business's reputation; distinct from protected opinion or substantially true statements.
Review Bombing
A coordinated campaign in which a large volume of negative reviews or comments are posted about a business or person in a short period, often by parties with no genuine connection to it.
Consulting Expert
An expert retained to advise counsel on technical matters without necessarily testifying, whose work product may be protected from discovery depending on jurisdiction and circumstances.