The emoji of a smiling face with outstretched hands (🤗), what emotion does that convey to you? And if you sent it to a family member, a friend, or a coworker, are you sure they'd perceive it as the same emotion? Are you will to go to court over it?

A new piece by Bloomberg Law tracks how emojis have become an increasing point of contention in court cases over recent years.

Eric Goldman, a law professor at Santa Clara University, conducts a yearly census of law cases involving emojis and emoticons. He found that, in 2023, there were 226 cases involving these text images—a 17 percent increase over 2022, and a 401 percent increase over a 5 year period.

Goldman further details how even judges are using emojis now in their opinions. He points to a 2023 ruling by the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York in which Judge Gary R Brown wrote, "Tallying the texting charges, which exceed a mind-blowing $750, invokes another emoji: 🤯."

And the trend isn't just domestic. In July 2023, a Canadian court ruled that the thumbs-up emoji constitutes a contract, reports The Guardian. Meanwhile, a Russian court found a Siberian teacher guilty of "discrediting the armed forces of the Russian Federation" by responding to an anti-war post on social media with an emoji, reports Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

Senator Signs

Back at home, the high-profile corruption case of Senator Bob Menendez included usage of an emoji.

In a press release about their case against the senator, the Justice Department wrote that "following meetings between [Sen. Menendez] and Egyptian officials, which were arranged and attended by Nadine Menedez and Hana, Menendez texted Nadine Menendez that she should tell Hana that Menedez was going to sign off on a multimillion-dollar weapons sale to Egypt. Nadine Menedez forwarded this text to Hana, who forwarded it to two Egyptian officials, one of whom replied with a 'thumbs up' emoji. Menedez made similar communications over the ensuing years."

Verdict

Language changes. Court documents from the 1600s certainly read differently and use different language than court cases from 2024. And emojis are increasingly part of our modern language. It should come as no surprise, then, that we find emojis seeping into the legal realm. But will we see a constitutional amendment in our lifetimes with an emoji in it? That would truly be 😮.