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.

Woody v. Carter

Date: 05/01/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Virginia
Publication: Blog
Roger Woody, a landowner and developer, sued four local bloggers in Virginia state court for tortious interference with contracts, conspiracy to harm his business, and "insulting words" (closely related to defamation) after they allegedly criticized him, his business, and at least one...
- 08/11/2008 - 6:48pm - 4 comments

Universal Communication Systems v. Lycos

Date: 07/02/2004
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total), Injunction Denied
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Florida, Massachusetts
Publication: Forum
Universal Communication Systems ("UCS") and its CEO, Michael Zwebner, sued Lycos, its Spanish parent company Terra Networks, and several anonymous users of Lycos's Raging Bull forum after the anonymous users created a forum about UCS and criticized the company there....
- 08/11/2008 - 5:49pm - 0 comments

Wargo v. Lavandeira

Date: 07/14/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Ohio
Publication: Blog
Diane Wargo sued Mario Lavandeira, also known as Perez Hilton, and 25 anonymous PerezHilton.com posters in Ohio state court after Lavandeira published an email containing homophobic slurs that Wargo sent to the blog from her work email account....
- 08/11/2008 - 5:00pm - 2 comments

CUNY v. CUNY Law Blog

Date: 04/08/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Blog
Note: This is a user-submitted description. The removal of the school's logo and the addition of the disclaimer was not enough for CUNY's general counsel. In the letter they sent on 04/08/08, they said CUNY Law Blog has 10 days to change...
- 08/11/2008 - 4:19pm - 0 comments

Reunion Industries v. Doe

Date: 04/04/2006
Status: Pending
Disposition: Dismissed (partial), Subpoena Quashed
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Pennsylvania
Publication: Forum
Reunion Industries sued three pseudonymous posters on a Yahoo! finance bulletin board for trade libel after they criticized the company and claimed it was in dire financial straits. After filing its complaint in Pennsylvania state court in April 2006, Reunion subpoenaed...
- 08/11/2008 - 3:19pm - 0 comments

Federal District Court v. Newspaper Tree

Date: 08/06/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Denial of Access
Jurisdiction: Texas
Publication: Website
On August 6, 2008, the Newspaper Tree, an online news site out of El Paso, Texas, which focuses on business, politics, and culture in the region, filed a motion objecting to an El Paso federal court's sealing of plea...
- 08/11/2008 - 11:39am - 0 comments

Doe v. Fortuny

Date: 02/20/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Verdict (plaintiff)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Illinois
Publication: Blog, Website
On February 20, 2008, an anonymous plaintiff sued Jason Fortuny in Illinois federal court for copyright infringement, invasion of privacy through the publication of private facts, and intrusion, after Mr. Fortuny allegedly posted his photograph and personal information on the Internet. Mr....
- 08/08/2008 - 3:03pm - 0 comments

Doe v. Fortuny (Correspondence)

Date: 10/04/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Lawsuit Filed
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: Washington
Publication: Blog
In October 2006, an unknown individual sent Jason Fortuny and his web host a DMCA takedown notice, complaining about a photograph posted on Mr. Fortuny's blog, RFJason. Mr. Fortuny, a now-famous Internet "troll" who was featured in an ...
- 08/08/2008 - 2:51pm - 0 comments

Bosley Medical Institute v. Kremer

Date: 11/28/2000
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (partial), Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: California, Illinois
Publication: Website
Bosley Medical Institute, a hair restoration company, sued Michael Kremer for federal trademark infringement, trademark dilution, unfair competition, and cybersquatting after Kremer created anti-Bosley "gripe sites" at bosleymedical.com and bosleymedicalviolations.com. Bosley also included state law claims for libel, trademark...
- 08/08/2008 - 1:01pm - 0 comments

McVea v. Crisp

Date: 04/20/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Texas
Publication: Forum
Denise McVea, a journalist and author, sued Alamo historian James Crisp in Texas federal court for defamation, false light, and intentional infliction of emotional distress after Crisp criticized McVea's research and book about in forum posts on a prominent Alamo history website,...
- 08/08/2008 - 12:46pm - 0 comments

Merkey v. Does

Date: 06/22/2005
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Material Removed, Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Utah
Publication: Website, Wiki
Jeff Merkey, a former employee of Novell, sued the operators of several websites with ties to the open source community, including legal news site groklaw.com, technology news site slashdot.org, and intellectual property site ip-wars.net, on claims...
- 08/08/2008 - 11:50am - 0 comments

Novak v. Active Window Productions

Date: 05/30/2001
Status: Pending
Disposition: Material Removed, Settled (partial)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Email
Pet shop owner Robert Novak, operator of Petswarehouse.com, sued Active Window Productions ("AWP"), host of the Aquatic Plants Digest ("APD"), a forum and email list for aquatic plant gardeners and hobbyists, and several individuals who criticized Pets Warehouse.  Novak added further claims against the individuals...
- 08/08/2008 - 11:03am - 0 comments

Ohlsen v. Hollenbeck

Date: 02/15/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Missouri
Publication: Forum, Website
Milton Ohlsen, who runs a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight promotion company, sued Joel S. Hollenbeck and Paul McElligott for defamation and tortious interference after they allegedly made false statements about him on the Internet. According to the complaint, Hollenback...
- 07/30/2008 - 4:38pm - 0 comments

Deep Blue Marine v. Krajewski

Date: 05/20/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total), Injunction Issued
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Utah
Publication: Forum
Deep Blue Marine, its CEO Wilf Blum, and Alexander Lindale LLC sued former Deep Blue operations manager Edward Krajewski after Krajewski criticized the plaintiffs and allegedly disclosed Deep Blue proprietary information on several online investor forums. The plaintiffs sought an injunction in Utah federal court...
- 07/30/2008 - 3:17pm - 0 comments

Storms v. Action Wisconsin

Date: 02/23/2004
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Wisconsin
Publication: Website
Lousiana preacher Grant E. Storms sued gay rights organization Action Wisconsin and its executive director Christopher Ott for defamation after Action Wisconsin issued an online press release on its website that said Storms had advocated the murder of gays in a speech...
- 07/30/2008 - 2:59pm - 0 comments

Johnson v. Barras

Date: 03/01/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (partial), Settled (partial), Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: District of Columbia
Publication: Email, Forum
Roslyn Johnson, former Deputy Director of the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation, sued Jonetta Rose Barras, Talk Media Communications, government watchdog website DCWatch, two DCWatch executives, and The District of Columbia, after DC Watch published in its electronic newsletter...
- 07/30/2008 - 2:07pm - 0 comments

Tendler v. Does

Date: 05/24/2006
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Subpoena
Jurisdiction: California
Publication: Blog
Rabbi Mordechai Tendler requested subpoenas in Ohio state court to force Google to uncover the identities of the writers of four blogs -  Jewish Whistleblower, Jewish Survivors of Sexual Violence Speak Out, New Hempstead News, and...
- 07/30/2008 - 1:33pm - 0 comments

Nationwide Relocation Services v. Walker

Date: 07/11/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Florida
Publication: Forum, Website
Moving company Nationwide Relocation Services ("Nationwide") sued Tim Walker, Walker's company, Consumers First Corp., which runs the MovingScam.com website, and several contributors to the MovingScam.com forum after Walker and the other contributors criticized the company's services. According to...
- 07/25/2008 - 2:18pm - 0 comments

Griffis v. Luban

Date: 09/01/1997
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total), Injunction Denied, Injunction Issued
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Minnesota, Alabama
Publication: Forum
In September 1997, Katherine Griffis sued Marianne Luban for defamation in Alabama state court after Luban criticized Griffis's academic credentials on the sci.archaeology USEnet newsgroup.  Griffis also sought an injunction against Luban to prevent her from republishing any of her...
- 07/23/2008 - 5:20pm - 1 comments

Three Angels Broadcasting v. Joy

Date: 04/06/2007
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Massachusetts
Publication: Website
Three Angels Broadcasting Network ("3ABN"), a non-denominational Christian TV and radio ministry with ties to Seventh-Day Adventism, and Danny Lee Shelton, 3ABN's president and one of its founders, sued Gailon Arthur Joy and Robert Pickle for trademark infringement, trademark dilution,...
- 07/23/2008 - 4:39pm - 0 comments

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