The doorbell rang 5 minutes ago.
It was delivery of a certified letter.
I am being ordered to take down all of my blog entries pertaining to JL Kirk & Associates. If I don’t, they will so me for tortuous interference and other damages.
In a subsequent conversation with the attorney, Alan Kopady of King & Ballow Law Offices, if I do not take down the blog entries they will contact my Internet Service Provider, Comcast, to have my internet access shut down.
I have until April 13th to comply with the demands of the letter.
I have not yet decided which action to take.
UPDATE 4/17/06: Attorneys for JL Kirk & Assocs. contacted Media Bloggers Association attorney Ronald Coleman shortly after receiving his letter stating that the MBA was representing me in this dispute on Thursday afternoon. Both sides expressed their wish to avoid litigation or further aggravation of the situation. JL Kirk’s main concern at the outset was that we communicate their position – which is different from the information originally told to me by a JL Kirk employee – that JL Kirk is not a continuation of the defunct Bernard Haldane company, either in terms of corporate identity or stock ownership, and that JL Kirk’s principal, Kirk Leipzig, is only a former Bernard Haldane employee but did not buy any assets or stock of Bernard Haldane. I can’t vouch for the truth of that statement because I have no first-hand knowledge of the facts, but evidently anyone who wants more information can obtain it from JL Kirk.
As you know if you read their cease and desist letter, the company disagrees with what I have said about them here, but they have told the MBA lawyer that they are interested in discussing this with my husband and me personally rather than litigating in court. I have not decided if I am interested in talking, but I don’t mind the idea of putting this behind me and moving on, and will not write on this topic again.
No WAY!
Not only are they jerks, but they’re stupid jerks too.
I’ve been placed by many headhunters. And I’ve used many headhunters to find staff. I’ve never known one to take their fee from the prospective employee.
Odds are, your ISP will tell them to get bent.
Wait. Why should you have to take down the entry that an employee of JL Kirk wrote? How are you responsible for the dumbass things that chick said?
Plus, what are they going to do about this? Sue Google?
Perhaps they should learn how the internet works. Even if you take down everything you ever wrote about them and everything they wrote about you, it’s still there, waiting to bite them in the butt.
That is such BS. They offer a service, you and T. are consumers of that service, you have every right to blog about it.
And if they start spouting confidentiality crap, looks to me like THEY blew any confidentiality stuff THEY should have been abiding by (if not legally, then morally and ethically) than you did.
AND it’s a dumb thing to do seeing as how this hurts their public relations WAY more than anything you did.
This is like me getting the entirely wrong order or crappy service at McDonald’s and blogging about it and them ordering me to stop.
Matter of fact, I may very well blog about JL Kirk and Associates and their crappy behavior from my viewpoint as a consumer/member of the public/”potential” client (not really, but you know).
Gonna threaten to sue me too, JL Kirk Big Bad Folks?
Jeez, why do companies not see how much MORE they hurt THEMSELVES by doing totally stupid stuff like this???
Thanks, JL Kirk! You just gave me a whole new cause to publicly spread all over the place when I get time. Thumbs up!!!
[…] hell no. Do not cave, Coble: The doorbell rang 5 minutes […]
Don’t do it. Also, make sure you have copies of everything. You may also want to submit around the web to places like Consumerist, Boing Boing (they’re always posting things about bullying/bogus takedown notices), etc. Aside from which, you’re a libertarian.
I also think it’s incredibly shady on their part to try to bully you into removing the posts.
If I were them, I’d knock it off. One thing bloggers love to do is turn someone into an internet verb. It’ll happen.
Rachel’s right. Take this to the Big Blogs.
If it were me, I’d post the letter in total here. Embarrass the snot out of an organization that so richly deserves public humiliation.
And make friends with an attorney, just in case.
PS Word to JL Kirk & Associates: Don’t piss off the public.
Especially the public that is web/’Net experienced AND savvy in Internet law.
Have fun shutting down the hundreds of untraceable blogs that are likely to spring up to spread the word about what complete and total jerks and what an irresponsible, shady company you are.
Not saying I’m doing it, oh no no no. I don’t have time.
I just know people. 😉
Bullies is right. And being a bully (especially a big corporate organization vs. a consumer) is SO great for PR!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tell them to get “Kirked”. By tomorrow it will be part of the lexicon.
Agreeing with Anne – you need to scan and post that puppy.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
where’s Roger when you need him–isn’t he the local lawyer??
and where’s Slartibartfast with the popcorn? 🙂
Can they do that? Legally? I can see someone requesting that you take down something written about them, but I don’t see how they have the power to have Comcast terminate your service. Sounds like BS to me.
I’ll have to go back and re-read the original, but it seems that you were writing about your experience, and being that it was yours, it doesn’t belong to them anyway.
Waiting to see how this turns out…
Kirk also needs to fire their lawyers. Threatening a dissatisfied client/consumer with legal action for blogging about their dissatisfaction is just plain stupid.
I just woke up from a nap and see this. Katherine, my first response is to say Hell No. This appears to be just a threat. How the hell can they have your internet service turned off?
Do what’s best for you and what you feel most comfortable with all though this pisses me off mightily.
You have the right to your opinion, you are not a commercial site and you have this right. I can’t help but think this is a bluff. I will send you the name of an attorney that deals in First Amendment law if you want.
This is bullshit. And I’m sorry you are going through this.
I can’t see in any way how this can be actionable in a court of law. Writing about your personal experience and opinion in a public forum can’t possibly translate into tortious interference of some contract they have with someone else. That’s a hell of a lot to prove. Just ask the Remnant folks how their similar lawsuit is going.
Check with your lawyers/family, but I think they’re blowing smoke.
Right on, #9…. “Kirked” could easily be nationwide by morning.
“King and Ballowed” too, for that matter.
If people wanna be bullies, they just might get “bullied” back.
1) It is not tortious interference if your claims are correct. They eventually would lose any such case they brought against you.
2) The key word is “eventually”. They are betting that since your husband has been job hunting you don’t have the money (or the emotional resources) to defend such a case successfully, let alone to enjoin them from attacking you through your ISP, etc.
Even though you’re in the right, you need to take point 2 into consideration. I don’t think it’s a First Amendment lawyer you would need (though Newscoma probably knows better than I do), it’s someone who does corporate claims stuff. And that can be pricey.
3) It also isn’t tortious interference if you haven’t been damaging their ability to do business, a claim that they must prove in court. Now, if you have been, good for you! But if it’s just Peace Quilt Lady continuing to overreact, hmmmmmm.
Ohhh, King & Ballow knows better than THAT. ISPs generally don’t pay much attention to a §512 takedown notice unless it’s a copyright or trademark infringement issue (or porn). They don’t care if you’re just criticizing somebody — it’s a First Amendment thing under fair comment and criticism, as you well know. They’re probably going to try the “Tortuous Interference with Prospective Advantage” angle, but it is indeed your constitutional right to tell the truth about your experience. You even gave them — unofficially, ha ha — a venue to respond to it.
Good luck. Also, go to Chilling Effects if you haven’t already.
Grandefille is absolutely right on this one, Katherine.
But if it’s just Peace Quilt Lady continuing to overreact, hmmmmmm.
That’s where my money’d be, nm. 😉
Beautiful PR. Love it. The entire Nashville blogging community, anyone who knows anyone involved with it, and probably a good portion of the Channel 2 audience online. Awesome PR job, JL Kirk and legal eagles! Giant thumbs up!!
God, people (especially big bully companies and their attorneys who should KNOW better) are so stupid.
“Don’t piss off the general public” should be the golden rule in every business everywhere.
(And the sad thing is this whole situation would have drifted down in the posts and been all but forgotten save for Google searches/etc. if some certain company and their lawyers just hadn’t overreacted, eh? Brilliant, Kirk folks. Just brilliant. Way to go.)
Kat, definitely, what grandefille says: check out the Chilling Effects link she posted (I’m link-impaired).
I despise this attempt to bully, blackmail and threaten you. For what it’s worth, whatever you decide to do has my support. I can understand not having the resources to fight them, even though you know they’re wrong.
But it doesn’t take much for news about this kind of behaviour to spread like wildfire through the ‘Net. Do they anticipate chasing down every reference to their company and their behaviour for the rest of their natural lives?
I agree with Aunt B. JL Kirk’s response in the comments was unprofessional. It was the wrong forum for their response and it seems to me that by contributing to the blog entry, their hands were dirtied.
Here’s Chilling Effects’ website, in case anyone is curious.
I wouldn’t want to go all passive-aggressive or anything, but I wonder if a Google Bomb for “JL Kirk” going to an appropriate URL at ripoffreport.com might be something to think about. I believe that ‘thinking’ is still an “inalienable right”…and that’s what I think.
Been out of pocket today. Just saw this. I won’t say much here other than it doesn’t seem like the “Peace Quilt” is working very well.
That’s horrible! What bullying…
That said, they think shutting YOU down will stop any others from either repeating your experiences with them elsewhere? Gee, brilliant people you’re dealing with.
[…] Go read this now! […]
[…] Kat Coble was served papers by attorneys representing JL Kirk & Associates for a post she did about some rather, err, […]
this whole thing just kills me…if JL Kirk is reading this blog still, they’re smacking their foreheads right about now because they had NO idea what a popular blogger/cohesive blog community they just messed with, or how badly this whole thing could blow up (is already blowing up) in their faces. yikes!
Not only nationwide but globally, Amy. Isn’t it beautiful?
Even if KC removes it or any local references are removed, I have no doubt this has already been picked up elsewhere. It’s not all just gonna magically disappear from the entire Internet.
Some days I hate the ‘Net, and some days like today, I love what the Internet is capable of…
Oops. I always for get to turn off auto-pingback when I use curse words in a post title. Sorry about that.
Me and my potty mouth. Or, really, potty fingers.
Hoo boy. Are the attorneys swarming to anybody else’s blog from links on these comments yet? My Sitemeter tracker is about to get the vapors.
Uncle, I don’t know that your potty fingers said anything I may have not been thinking…
GF–WP site meter no longer shows referrers. Are they really coming to your blog?
Wow.
It’s nice to feel wanted. (cf. Aunt B’s PPP post yesterday… ;-p)
My friend, Kat
Liberty, free speech (or the lack thereof) are front and center at Kat’s place. She was served.
Hee hee hee. Never fear, Ms. C. I am not alarmed, just amused. I don’t say important things like you do, so they’ll just be bored to tears for a couple of minutes and then leave.
And come back here and see all the support you have and say, “Uhmmmm, well …” Hee!
May I take this opportunity to step into a stereotypical Innernets mode and give you a ((((((BIG HUG))))))? No? Okay.
I shall also continue to pray strongly for y’all, though. I think I can tick it off like a rosary now!
Get ready for the instalanch! Glenn Reynolds just posted this to the top of his blog. I read his post and thought “gee, i know a Tennessee blogger”, then clicked through and thought “uh, oh”. Not that you don’t have a case, but that your site will probably be knocked off for awhile. I’m with the folks above. The crazy lady who posted the long comment IN FULL PUBLIC VIEW then wants it taken down because of libel?!?! Yeah, right.
Jason
Well good grief, what an interesting day that you’ve had. Overall what a foolish reaction from a company that allegedly wants to “help” people. Criticism and opinion are still allowed in this country, no matter what they seem to think about it. This over-reaction on their part just strikes me as a “thou doth protest too much” scenario.
If JL Kirk and Associates were really doing that great a job, their accomplishments would balance out and overshadow any bad press they might get from an unsatisfied customer. There just doesn’t seem to be anything good about them out in the world. Wonder why?
I bet your next certified letter will be an order to cease and desist your television watching for the next week and to go straight to your room with no milk and cookies.
I think it’s about time to get this Dugg.
“Kirk” them in the knee.
[…] Blogging & Bloggers, Friends & Acquaintances — Aunt B. @ 4:31 pm Y’all, Coble is getting bullied by JL Kirk. Apparently, they believe that a consumer has no right to inform others of her poor interaction […]
[…] is quite a soap opera going on at Just Another Pretty Farce regarding Mrs. Coble’s issues with JL Kirk & […]
You should grant every blogger permission to copy and post your content related to this matter. Let JL Kirk and Associates pay legal fees to serve EVERY BLOG on the freaking net… Plus, you have the bonus of getting out the “good word” regarding JL Kirk and associates to an even greater number of people.
Just a thought…
Stand your ground. They can’t get your internet connection shut off based on a defamation claim, even if they won in court, which will never happen. Fuck those guys.
Kevin, I think you mean “Kirk” those guys.
Seems that Kirk and Associates don’t know what they’ve gotten into.
Can I say that? Comcast is my provider, too. Bring it on.
Oh for heaven’s sake! This is ridiculous.
Not only is it petty and legally fuzzy at best, it’s dumb too. And while resources are definitely something to factor in, behaviorally, you’re probably one of the most fearless people I know out there. Between the libertarian sensibilities, general awesomeness, and legion of friends and acquaintances, I can’t help but picture the company as a kid learning about bee stings for the first time. Sure, they’re small and cute, but they’re by no means helpless.
You might want to see what the Better Business Bureau thinks:
http://data.middletennessee.bbb.org/commonreport.html?bid=37011228&language=1
[…] Aunt B. is reporting that Instapundit is reporting Katherine Coble’s story. And the support just keeps on coming at the House of Coble. And here’s more from Say […]
Lending my voice here with those in support of you!!! I’m just flabbergasted by all this.
f ’em. do they really want their dirty laundry aired in the courts?
sorry to double up…thought i could email you, but can’t seem to find “contact info”.
i’ve got a friend who works for a real, non slimy, reputable job placement firm…email me if you want and i’ll get your husband in touch with him.
and no, i won’t charge you $4427.88 to do it.
Like SayUncle, in my 10 years of using many different agencies to hire staff (as well as to get hired), never, ever, has my company ever taken the money out of a new hirer’s prospective annual salary to pay the agency fee. We always paid our new hires found through agencies the exact same amount that we paid new hires which we found directly.
Now, how it works for freelance assignments is the employment agency will ask you what your hourly rate is (ie, $25/hr). When Company X decides they want you to work for them, the employment agency will then tell Company X that the hourly rate for your services is $50/hr, and that is how they make their money.
I have never had an employment agency request any fee directly from me.
This is a scam if I’ve ever heard one.
Fight the good fight, Katherine! This ain’t right! 🙂
Yeah, you’ve got my support as well. Being a poker fiend, I’d say they’re bluffing. Stand your ground.
I’d suggest you look up IJ (Institue of Justice) and see if they have an interest in this case. If Tennessee law seems to be in violation of the First Amendment (which, after all, came about because of a libel case in the colonies — against publishing something that was true but unpleasant about a person in power) these guys will probably be all over it. If not, they can tell you and this other law firm so in small, easily-understood words.
Get mirror sites going, right now. Its the internet – it treats censorship as damage and routes around it. Let people know the posts in question and let them duplicate them on their own. Lets see a C&D work on a Hungarian server. HAH!
*Institute Bah. I can spell. Sometimes.
If you will email me, I will be happy to provide an article on this topic that might assist you with regard to Tennessee law.
BMR
[…] writing about her unfortunate incident with JL Kirk, she has apparently become the target of idiotic stongarm tactics. This, after one of their employees puked up a long, rambling, inaccurate (need I […]
Watch out for King and Ballow, too. They are some of the (blankety-blank-blank) lawyers on the planet. I certainly hope that in Tenn. that truth is still a defense in a libel case.
I’m posting this on my site and passing it to a national online community of recruiting weblogs through Recruiting.com.
My bet is every single one of my readers think that companies that charge fees to candidates should be avoided like the plague.
No candidate should ever have to pay money to get placed.
[…] This Entry For A Limited Time Only The doorbell rang 5 minutes ago. It was delivery of a certified letter. I am being ordered to take down all of my blog […] […]
Blogger Threatened With Lawsuit For Exposing Headhunter
Instapundit links the story of Just Another Pretty Farce, a Tennessee Blogger whose husband went to see an executive recruitment firm with a drawn out sales process that required the candidate to pay the fee. Let me stop right here.
[…] blogged. You can go to Brittney’s post to follow the posts, the responses and today’s take-down notice that threatens to, among other things, contact her ISP, Comcast, to have her Internet access shut […]
I am sitting here just laughing my head off at how this whole thing EXPLODED in just a few hours. I would so love to see your blog stats for today, Kat!
[…] company, JL Kirk & Associates. Evidently, they were none too pleased, and today, KC received a cease & desist. JL Kirk & Associates has severely underestimated the support she would receive from the […]
Ever heard of the First Amendment? We have freedom of speech in this country. That means Katherine has every right to post that article. These guys must want socialism in this county, where freedom of speech doesn’t exist.
She might have taken down the posts, but JL Kirk & Associates will get what is coming to them. The way this story is spreading around the blogosphere, people will see what this company really is. I think all bloggers should stand up and rally around Katherine.
[…] I just screwed up and made a comment over at the marvelous, marvelous Home Ec 101 about the whole JL Kirk situation that I probably should have just posted here since I got to rambling on too much, but jeez, I am […]
We’re carefully following your experience and the reaction here in La Vergne since our community blog has been criticized in the past for exercising our free speech. We’re with you, Kat!
Hey JL Kirk….now we know about you down here in Huntsville, AL too.
I just wrote about this on 3 blogs with a total of 3,000 to 4,000 readers.
J. L. Kirk, or J L Kirk etc. has been Kirked.
I’m sure you have seen the Instapundit write up.
If you need help lawyer wise contact EFF. The Electronic Frontier Foundation.
I just did a google search on J L Kirk
1.15 million hits.
I think those boys jumped the shark.
[…] Tennessee placement firm JL Kirk Associates. Shortly thereafter, however, JL Kirk sent the Cobles a different kind of proposal — to shut up or else: I am being ordered to take down all of my blog entries pertaining to JL […]
TORTUOUS interference.
Tortuous letter, really.
One spelling error can do so much for one’s credibility.
Any Wikipedia editors out there? If “Fisking” has an entry..there is no reason in the verse that “Kirked” and/or “Kirking” shouldn’t have it’s own..
“Kirked” became a verb meaning “to have your reputation ruined for trying to stifle a blogger’s free speech.” – from the Zero Boss.
..and the subsequent blowback from the blogosphere that will insue..
I loves me some interwebs!
Count me in the don’t cave crowd. You have my deepest sympathies for the trouble this is for you personally. What a pain! But I hope you feel the blog love. This is the good fight.
Share the letter and the love with us.
So everyone knows, Bob’s googlejuice post was linked to fark.com this morning.
Front page.
[…] latest case in point is Katherine Coble, who is being threatened with frivolous legal action by J.L. Kirk Associates (formerly Bernard […]
Katherine,
F’ing Smantix called this to my attention. I wish you the best outcome of this. i.e. Total vindication and a black eye for J.L. Kirk & Assoc.
I think Nony Mouse has the right idea. It wouldn’t take Perry Mason to defend this, and free speech suits are what organizations like the ACLU live for.
Contact them and get some free specialist lawyers.
[…] if Coble’s account is accurate, sounds like a sleazy hard sell at best and a scam at worst) a certified letter appeared at her door with a threat to sue for libel over the post. Nashville is Talking has a chronological […]
[…] Katherine Cobel got a rude visitor the other day: The doorbell rang 5 minutes ago.It was delivery of a certified […]
[…] was not happy with this turn of events, and instead of trying to work directly with their customer, they went ahead and sued her in order to get her criticism […]
[…] if Coble’s account is accurate, sounds like a sleazy hard sell at best and a scam at worst) a certified letter appeared at her door with a threat to sue for libel over the post. Nashville is Talking has a chronological […]
I’ll bet dollars to donuts that their main objective is getting the tacky comments left by their idiot employee removed.
Before theatening a lawsuit and causing a huge mess, they should have offered you some money to do so.
[…] April 12th, 2007 — Slartibartfast I haven’t posted about the firestorm surrounding my friend Kat, involving suspect business practices and a bully lawyer, because I commented about it at her place […]
[…] that there may be someone dropping by this site who has not already been elsewhere where the great Coble vs. JL Kirk battle is mentioned, I’m bringing it up […]
PSA. The story is now Farked, so when you read this, it’s already spread to the entire world..
Dont let these bastards get away with this (Both: L. Kirk & Associates, or Kirk Associates, or JL Kirk, or JLK, or JLK-A, or sometimes just “Kirk“ and their low-life lawyers King & Ballow).
They may have just set a new Guiness record for “Worst PR move EWA!!!”
Don’t take anything down. You are protected by the Bill of Rights. Make them make you take it down — and find a good lawyer to defend you. This is a matter of free speech – you were describing personal experiences and from my perspective nothing you have written about falls under slander or falsehoods (of course I’m not a legal expert). Stick up for Free Speech – take it all the way to the Supreme Court if you have to!!!
Alas, free speech only really applies between you and the government, you can try it though. I don’t see how your post is any different than a epinions.com review though. I didn’t see your post as slander/libel or anything of that ilk, just you stating the progression of events, which the company didn’t really disagree with.
And, unless you signed a non-disclosure going into the meeting, I don’t see what you said is so dangerous as to remove your livelihood (if you are a semi-pro blogger, having your internet removed is your livelihood).
Funny though, they never mentioned contacting WP to get your blog removed from the system… somehow I doubt they’d find any help there.
Call your isp and run this all by them, send them th e links. Comcast hasn’t always rolled over on this crap before.
I hadn’t thought of that, but sadcox might very well be right. This could be in part about trying to get their employee’s idiocy off the internet.
“Fluffy-bunny headhunters vs. mean blogger” is the title of my most recent LiveJournal entry.
How I came here: via http://politicalwire.com/wingers, which quoted Outside the Beltway’s comments on the matter.
[…] didn’t know who asked me to add them to the list I made Wednesday and Thursday regarding the JL Kirk/Katherine Coble […]
Wow, catching up on your blog here. While I’m sure it’s very scary to get something official like that in the mail, my guess is that it’s pretty standard for an attorney to suggest a C&D. I think in most cases like this, people won’t challenge it. It’s a scare tactic. I bet they won’t take it any further but I’m not the one facing a fight like this.
One thing is for sure…the way they are handling this is pretty slimy. If I find myself in the job market, JL Kirk will not be on my list of “placement” companies to work with.
Tell those Douchebags to fuck off!
THE Eliyahu is HERE!!! that’s pretty awesome!
I’ve been reading your blog through Mack’s, dude.
Exactly the same happened to me. They’re an absurd waste of time and money and just shake-down artists who prey on the weak who are unemployed. They are disreputable and sleazy. You did right to talk about them. You should open a legal defense fund.
Peter
[…] of these things to “be wary of” sound quite similar to Katherine Coble’s now infamous experience with J.L. Kirk, as well as those of Tim W and Neural Mifire just last […]
Don’t worry one jot, you know your hubby and yourself went to a great deal of trouble and preparation to attend the interviews, and its all reclaimable if it was a scam and fraudulent behaviour on their part can be proved.
And I’m certain that they must have at least five disgruntled ex-employees out there who are dying to be ‘Whistle blowers’ . Ex-employees who can name names, and point the authorities in the right direction and with their old commission statements on hand. You can guess why they wanted to settle this and not see it escalate. In my opinion you have a front page story and any reporter looking for this years Pulitzer Priza ought to follow it up. If they, or their attorneys dispute this then challenge them to a TV debate? AW. Leeds.
[…] Katherine Cobel got a rude visitor the other day: The doorbell rang 5 minutes ago. It was delivery of a certified […]
reimportation palaeoalchemical hamulate anisal coelenteron antitrust insularly polisher
84222
http://www.freewebs.com/wluqpg/1.html
Just wanted to check and see if anyone else had mentioned the ‘database’ that JL Kirk had bought when they went into business. I interviewed with them in Brentwood, TN in 2004-5, and one of their selling points was the database they had purchased shortly before forming their company. This database cost a huge sum – according to one of the top guys at this branch. They quoted some large number of companies, and a large number of HR type people they had contact information of in the database. I wondered how they got this information, if it existed, and if they sold any other interviewees on the fact that they had all the information that anyone wishing to make 80,000 a year in salary needed to pursue their dream job. They claimed they had information on every large company in every large city, and could point the candidate in the right direction, and get the resume information in front of the right people. Now that the company is on the skids, I wonder if the database is for sale? It would have cost $5000 to find out if there really was a database, so I wonder if there really was one?
Just found your news. I am amazed at companies who will attempt to control freedom of speech. Good luck to you.
Your story has been added to the Traton News site at: http://tratonnews.blogspot.com/2008/02/traton-headline-jl-kirk-associates.html
Carol-I have some questions about your little snag, I have a similar scenario. Perhaps you could help me determine my next moves– I hate ding dang lawyers.
Maybe you could reply with your phone #? I know that’s a lot to ask–but I would appreciate it tremendously.
TIA
Correction–Kat-
I’m sorry- I’m new to the concept posting etc. I live in TX.
TIAA
Do you have to be a certain age to use this?