Recent Threats Added to the DMLP Database

NOTE: The information and commentary contained in this database entry are based on court filings and other informational sources that may contain unproven allegations made by the parties. The truthfulness and accuracy of such information is likely to be in dispute. Information contained in this entry is current as of the last event mentioned in the "Description" section below; additional proceedings might have taken place in this matter since this event.

Rejuvenation Strax and Aesthetics Institute v. Durham

Date: 05/08/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: Material Removed
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Florida
Publication: Forum
Strax Rejuvenation and Aesthetics Institute, a plastic surgery clinic in Lauderhill, Florida, filed a lawsuit in May 2008 against a patient who allegedly posted a defamatory review of her treatment on CitySearch.com. The patient, Marshia Durham, said in news reports that she...
- 07/21/2009 - 5:50pm - 0 comments

First Call Properties v. Craigslist

Date: 05/29/2009
Status: Pending
Disposition: Dismissed (partial)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Texas
Publication: Website
First Call Properties and its officers filed suit against AAA Apartment Locating and Craigslist in Texas state court, alleging, among other claims, trademark infringement, defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and tortious interference.  According to the complaint, First Call began...
- 07/20/2009 - 12:09pm - 0 comments

24grille v. TripAdvisor.com

Date: 04/02/2009
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Michigan
Publication: Website
24 Grille, a self-described upscale restaurant at a hotel in Detroit, Michigan, filed a libel and negligence lawsuit against review site TripAdvisor.com after an anonymous TripAdvisor user advised others to avoid the restaurant. According to the complaint, the poster told...
- 07/17/2009 - 11:15am - 0 comments

Sethi v. TechCrunch

Date: 06/28/2009
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: United Kingdom
Publication: Blog
On February 19, 2009, lawyers representing Sam Sethi, a former employee of TechCrunch and former CEO of now-defunct BlogNation, sent a letter to TechCrunch co-founder Michael Arrington threatening suit "within the jurisdiction of the High Court of England...
- 07/16/2009 - 5:26pm - 0 comments

Guinness World Records v. FAIL Blog

Date: 07/01/2009
Status: Pending
Disposition: Material Removed, Material Reinstated
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction:
Publication: Blog
Guinness World Records Limited (GWR) sent a cease-and-desist email to FAIL Blog after it published a posting called "Record Breaking Fail," which showed a screenshot from the Guinness World Records website for the entry "most...
- 07/15/2009 - 2:00pm - 0 comments

Hillstone Restaurant Group v. Pietrylo

Date: 05/09/2006
Status: Concluded
Disposition: n/a
Type: Disciplinary Action
Jurisdiction: New Jersey
Publication: Social Network
Brian Pietrylo and Doreen Marino filed a lawsuit against their former employer, Hillstone Restaurant Group d/b/a Houston's, following their termination for posting comments critical of the company on a private MySpace page. According to court documents, Pietrylo "setup a private group on...
- 07/13/2009 - 6:40pm - 0 comments

YP.Net v. StockLemon

Date: 01/08/2004
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Arizona
Publication: Website
YP.Net Inc., a provider of online Yellow Pages, filed a defamation lawsuit in Arizona federal court against StockLemon.com after the website published critical statements about the company.  YP.Net alleged that StockLemon.com intentionally sought to damage YP.Net's reputation in order to drive down...
- 07/13/2009 - 6:04pm - 0 comments

B.F. Shaw Printing v. Skinner

Date: 06/11/2009
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Illinois
Publication: Blog
B.F. Shaw Printing, the Northwest Herald’s parent company, filed a lawsuit against Cal Skinner Jr.,  a local blogger, for alleged defamatory comments, regarding the Herald's past funding and supposed political bias, that he posted on his blog. Shaw's three-count complaint claims defamation, false...
- 07/09/2009 - 4:36pm - 0 comments

Grebner v. Lennox

Date: 05/14/2009
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Michigan
Publication: Wiki
Ingham County Commissioner and Michigan political consultant Mark Grebner filed a defamation lawsuit in Michigan state court against three conservative activists for allegedly inserting false and defamatory information into his biographical Wikipedia entry.  The defendants were three university students active...
- 07/08/2009 - 11:00am - 0 comments

Salyer v. Southern Poverty Law Center, Inc.

Date: 12/18/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: Dismissed (partial), Material Removed
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Kentucky
Publication: Print, Website
Robert Salyer sued the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) in Kentucky state court over allegedly defamatory content in its print and online magazine, "Intelligence Report," which he claims stated that "he had been disbarred from practicing in military courts and also that...
- 07/07/2009 - 6:33pm - 0 comments

Town of Secaucus v. NJ.com

Date: 09/01/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: Material Removed
Type: Subpoena
Jurisdiction: New Jersey
Publication: Forum
According to the Hudson Reporter, in September 2008 the Town of Secaucus sought a subpoena from a Hudson County Superior Court judge to force NJ.com, a website run by a group of New Jersey newspapers, to disclose the identities of...
- 07/07/2009 - 6:27pm - 0 comments

Hawaii v. Wong-Fernandez

Date: 11/12/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Convicted
Type: Criminal Charge
Jurisdiction: Hawaii
Publication: Social Network
The state of Hawaii indicted Rhonda Wong-Fernandez, a former clerical assistant, on the charge of unauthorized computer access in the first degree after she allegedly accessed a female patient's medical records and posted on a MySpace page that the patient had HIV.  The...
- 07/07/2009 - 5:51pm - 0 comments

Palin v. Moore

Date: 07/04/2009
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: Alaska
Publication: Blog, Broadcast, Website
On July 4, 2009, an attorney for Alaska Governor Sarah Palin sent an open letter to Alaska blogger Shannyn Moore, the Huffington Post, MSNBC, the New York Times, The Washington Post, and other news organizations threatening to file...
- 07/05/2009 - 11:45am - 0 comments

Ricobene v. JP Morgan Chase

Date: 04/13/2009
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Illinois
Publication: Social Network
James Ricobene filed suit against JP Morgan Chase and collection agency Universal Tracing Services (UTS) after a UTS employee allegedly posted a message on Ricobene's daughter's MySpace page threatening legal action if he did not surrender his 2007 Mercedes GL450, which he...
- 07/01/2009 - 6:08pm - 0 comments

Consociate Inc. v. Macon County Shared Vision

Date: 06/04/2007
Status: Pending
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Illinois
Publication: Website
Administrators of the employee healthcare plan for the city of Decatur, Illinois filed a defamation lawsuit against Macon County Shared Vision, a concerned-citizens group that criticized high healthcare costs in several website postings. Defendants moved to dismiss the complaint under Illinois anti-SLAPP statute,...
- 06/30/2009 - 6:19pm - 0 comments

Tanner Friedman v. Doe

Date: 05/27/2009
Status: Pending
Disposition: Material Removed, Subpoena Enforced
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Michigan
Publication: Micro-blog
TFSC, LLC, a public relations firms doing business as Tanner Friedman, is suing an unknown Twitter user in a Detroit federal district court seeking injunctive relief and damages arising out of his use of the Twitter account "tannerfriedman."  Tanner Friedman, in its...
- 06/30/2009 - 5:55pm - 0 comments

Skutt Catholic High School v. Does

Date: 06/30/2006
Status: Pending
Disposition: Material Removed
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Nebraska
Publication: Wiki
Skutt Catholic High School sued anonymous Wikipedia posters over critical edits posted to the school's Wikipedia page in 2006. The posts criticized the quality of education at the school and its high tuition, used vulgar language, and referenced student drug use. After...
- 06/30/2009 - 4:54pm - 0 comments

Badi'i v. Foote

Date: 06/24/2009
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Nevada
Publication: Website
Faris and Ruhanieh Badi'i sued Nikki Foote in Nevada state court for defamation after Foote posted a disparaging comment on eBay claiming a bag she had purchased from the Bad'i'is was a fake. The Badi'is, of Austin, Texas, alleges Foote, whom...
- 06/29/2009 - 10:45pm - 0 comments

Jacob v. Bezzant

Date: 01/01/1999
Status: Pending
Disposition: Dismissed (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Utah
Publication: Print, Website
In 1999, Brett Bezzant, then-owner of the American Fork Citizen New Utah!, a local newspaper, published a political advertisement prepared and paid for by Bill Jacob, which claimed that an American Fork City ordinance barred two men from running for City Council,...
- 06/26/2009 - 2:51pm - 0 comments

Bible & Gospel Trust v. Twinam

Date: 01/25/2007
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Vermont
Publication: Website
Bible & Gospel Trust, associated with a religious group known as the Exclusive Brethren, sued Sallie and Timothy Twinam claiming that they were the owners and operators of the website Peebs.net, which is critical of the Exclusive Brethren....
- 06/26/2009 - 2:28pm - 0 comments

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