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Getting sued for something you post on sj.com (or any message board)

Discussion in 'Anything goes' started by Almost_Famous, Jul 16, 2006.

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  1. Point of Order

    Point of Order Active Member

    ditto. ditto. ditto. I read a case on this, and the way I understand it, the court must weigh the right of privacy (heavily) against the possible conflicting interest. Granted, if there was a detailed, legitimate terror threat or credible and specific threat of violence the privacy likely wouldn't be protectable, but a general "Joe Schmoe is a fraud, cheater, liar" stuff doesn't cut it. Of course, Webby is under no contractual obligation withhold such info, so better be nice to him.
     
    Point of Order, Jul 17, 2006
    #13
  2. Ben_Hecht

    Ben_Hecht Active Member

    Starman gets it. Most of the public figures evaluated on this site are fair game for discussion. And there's considerable restraint
    displayed, considering what you COULD post about some of these folks, in a truth-serum world . . .
     
    Ben_Hecht, Jul 17, 2006
    #14
  3. Lugnuts

    Lugnuts Well-Known Member

    Y'all are assuming Webby would want to go to court to keep from giving up our info.

    I love Webby, and I trust Webby.

    But Webby ain't paying a lawyer to go to court on our behalf. ;D

    Private e-mail is subpoena-able and admissible in court... why wouldn't an IP address be?
     
    Lugnuts, Jul 17, 2006
    #15
  4. Flying Headbutt

    Flying Headbutt Moderator Staff Member

    Maybe it is, but in in the past the courts have ruled against forcing IP providers from releasing that information. Though the case I was referring to involved a pair of city-level elected officials.
     
    Flying Headbutt, Jul 17, 2006
    #16
  5. Lugnuts

    Lugnuts Well-Known Member

    FHB-- again-- do you picture Webby in court?
     
    Lugnuts, Jul 17, 2006
    #17
  6. G-Spot

    G-Spot Member

    Case I can think of involves Richard Scrushy, former CEO of HealthSouth. When the Yahoo! stock message boards exploded in the late 90s somebody started posting some pretty nasty stuff on the Internet about him and his wife. The funny part was that posts made about the company nearing collapse were mostly true. Anyway, Scrushy won his defamation case against the guy, a husband of a former HealthSouth employee.

    http://www.post-gazette.com/regionstate/19981108cyber5.asp

    From my understanding a message board owner/operator can be sued and forced to give up information regarding certain users. Libel and slander extend into cyberspace.

    So if you want to call someone a fucktard go ahead, that's hardly libel or slander. If you want to accuse someone of pedophilia and beastiality, I wouldn't advise it.
     
    G-Spot, Jul 17, 2006
    #18
  7. Flying Headbutt

    Flying Headbutt Moderator Staff Member

    No, this particular case dealt with Comcast, whose legal resource I assume far outnumber Webby's. But why would someone sue for a moniker, one which they already know, when they'd likely have the IP address anyway? They'd be better off taking that number to the ISP, or perhaps to the paper its registered to and trying to find out that way. And I'd expect a bit more of a legal fight that way.

    Hell, all Webby would have to say is "this person never told me who they were" or he could argue "this person claimed to be Joe Hack, but anyone could make that claim and I'd never really know. I live all the way in Timbucktoo and they live in a suburb of Tahoe." The registration system here isn't exactly on par with a financial services site.
     
    Flying Headbutt, Jul 17, 2006
    #19
  8. Lugnuts

    Lugnuts Well-Known Member

    Or, more likely, Webby could just say, "I don't need this bullshit. I'm dumping the site." :(

    Bottom line: I think if you don't want it to come out in court, don't write it here.
     
    Lugnuts, Jul 17, 2006
    #20
  9. Point of Order

    Point of Order Active Member

    Your as is SO SUED!
     
    Point of Order, Jul 17, 2006
    #21
  10. Lucas Wiseman

    Lucas Wiseman Well-Known Member

    Precisely!
     
    Lucas Wiseman, Jul 17, 2006
    #22
  11. Lucas Wiseman

    Lucas Wiseman Well-Known Member

    Both
     
    Lucas Wiseman, Jul 17, 2006
    #23
  12. leo1

    leo1 Active Member

    from what i've learned, the issue can go either way. it's often dismissed on a technicality -- lack of jurisdiction if, say reporter in state X tries to sue me for libeling him, but i'm in state Y. reporter X isn't going to spend time and resources to come down to my state but the court in his state doesn't have jurisdiction over me. so he loses.
     
    leo1, Jul 17, 2006
    #24
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