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.

Ben Ezra, Weinstein, and Company v. AOL

Date: 03/01/1997
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: New Mexico
Publication: Website
In March 1997, Ben Ezra, Weinstein, and Company ("BEW") sued America Online, Inc. ("AOL") for defamation and negligence in New Mexico state court after AOL allegedly published incorrect values for BEW's stock price and share volume.  AOL removed the lawsuit...
- 07/23/2008 - 1:51pm - 0 comments

Lilly v. Rocky Mountain Right

Date: 07/01/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: Colorado
Publication: Blog
George Lilly, a Republican candidate for Colorado's First Congressional District, threatened legal action against Anthony Surace's blog, Rocky Mountain Right, unless Surace removed a post where Surace endorsed Lilly's primary opponent and criticized Lilly for being a possible detriment to...
- 07/22/2008 - 11:00am - 0 comments

Levitt v. New York City Police Department

Date: 01/10/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Denial of Access
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Blog
On January 10, 2007, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) notified Leonard Levitt, a journalist and blogger who operates NYPD Confidential, that it would not renew his press credentials.  Before this denial, Levitt had held NYPD press credentials for...
- 07/18/2008 - 5:46pm - 0 comments

Programmes Internationaux D'Echanges v. Grijalva

Date: 09/21/2007
Status: Pending
Disposition: Injunction Issued
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: North Carolina
Publication: Email, Website
Programmes Internationaux D'Echanges (P.I.E.), a French nonprofit that organizes student exchange programs, filed suit against Danielle Grijalva, director of the Committee for Safety of Foreign Exchange Students (CSFES), over emails and postings on CSFES's website that criticized the...
- 07/18/2008 - 5:39pm - 0 comments

New York v. Tsabar

Date: 01/23/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Subpoena
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Blog
Bronx District Attorney Robert T. Johnson issued a grand jury subpoena to New York political blog Room Eight seeking identifying information for several anonymous bloggers and commentors. The subpoena ordered Room Eight operators Gur Tsabar and Ben Smith not to disclose...
- 07/17/2008 - 4:48pm - 0 comments

Oregon v. Lewis

Date: 07/01/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Subpoena
Jurisdiction: Oregon
Publication: Website
Independent videographer Tim Lewis refused to comply with a Lane County, Oregon, grand jury subpoena for video he filmed of a May 30, 2008, incident where police tasered Ian Van Ornum, a student protester.  Lewis argued that Oregon's reporter shield law, ...
- 07/16/2008 - 7:59pm - 0 comments

Kruska v. Perverted Justice Foundation

Date: 01/10/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: Dismissed (partial)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Arizona
Publication: Blog, Email, Social Network, Website, Wiki
Jan Kruska sued several anti-pedophile organizations, including Perverted Justice Foundation, Inc. ("PJFI"), and individuals affliliated with those organizations, as well as domain registrar GoDaddy.com and social networking site MySpace.com, after the organizations accused Kruska of being...
- 07/16/2008 - 12:21pm - 0 comments

Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association v. SHARK

Date: 12/11/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: Illinois
Publication: Website
YouTube.com shut down the account of Showing Animals Respect And Kindness ("SHARK"), an animal rights activitist group, after the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association ("PRCA") filed DMCA takedown notices in December 2007 regarding SHARK videos that...
- 07/11/2008 - 4:07pm - 0 comments

Fremgen v. FullofBologna.com

Date: 03/30/2006
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Injunction Issued, Material Removed, Settled (partial)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Wisconsin
Publication: Forum
Diane Fremgen, the clerk of courts for Winnebago County, Wisconsin, sued online forum FullofBologna.com; its operator, Dennis Payne; Studio 28, Payne's web design company; and a John Doe known as Mr. Imperfect for defamation after Mr. Imperfect posted two lewd...
- 07/11/2008 - 3:43pm - 0 comments

Georgia Community Support and Solutions v. Berryhill (Correspondence)

Date: 01/01/2005
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Lawsuit Filed
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: Georgia
Publication: Email, Website
Georgia Community Support and Solutions, Inc. (GCSS), a non-profit organization that provides assistance to disabled adults and their families, sent a cease-and-desist letter to Shirley Berryhill, a mother who made critical comments about GCSS in a web posting and in emails to employees of...
- 07/11/2008 - 1:06pm - 0 comments

Georgia Community Support and Solutions v. Berryhill (Lawsuit)

Date: 02/08/2005
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Georgia
Publication: Email, Website
On February 8th, 2005, Georgia Community Support and Solutions (GCSS), a non-profit organization that provides assistance to disabled adults and their families, filed a lawsuit against Shirley Berryhill for defamation and tortious interference with business relations over statements she made...
- 07/11/2008 - 1:05pm - 0 comments

Batzel v. Smith

Date: 09/07/2000
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (partial)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: California
Publication: Email
In September 2000, Ellen Batzel, a California attorney, sued Robert Smith, Ton Cremers, the Netherlands Museums Association ("NMA"), and Mosler, Inc. for defamation after Cremers published on an international email list an email, written by Smith, in which Smith accused Batzel of...
- 07/09/2008 - 6:30pm - 0 comments

Malik v. ScamFraudAlert.com

Date: 06/20/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: California
Publication: Forum
On June 20, 2008, counsel for Bernard Malik sent a cease-and-desist letter via email to the administrator of ScamFraudAlert.com, a forum site that focuses on alleged Internet scams, security threats, and fraudulent practices. The letter asserted that a forum user...
- 07/07/2008 - 2:48pm - 2 comments

Hammitt v. Watson

Date: 12/02/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Georgia
Publication: Website
On December 2, 2007, Ed and Brenda Hammitt filed a lawsuit against Teresa Watson, the operator of RomeNewsByWatson.com, a news website that purports to "document . . . items of public corruption," claiming defamation and libel for publishing comments...
- 07/03/2008 - 5:57pm - 1 comments

Tucson Greyhound Park v. Zoldan

Date: 01/03/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Injunction Denied, Settled (partial), Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Arizona
Publication: Blog
Tucson Greyhound Park (TGP) filed a defamation suit against blogger Karyn Zoldan after she criticized its treatment of racing dogs. TGP took issue with Zoldan's postings on End Tucson Greyhound Racing, including statements that tens of thousands of dogs had...
- 07/03/2008 - 2:02pm - 0 comments

Ramsey v. Harman

Date: 08/27/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Dismissed (total), Injunction Denied, Injunction Issued
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: North Carolina
Publication: Blog
Linda Ramsey and Erin Knox, Ramsey's daughter, sued Cindie Harman for stalking in North Carolina state court after Harman wrote on her blog, Bonifide, that Knox was a "bully" and "the reason kids hate to go to school," according...
- 07/01/2008 - 1:49pm - 2 comments

Ottinger v. The Journal News

Date: 02/25/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Subpoena Enforced
Type: Subpoena
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Forum
Former House Representative Richard Ottinger and his wife, June Ottinger, filed a John Doe lawsuit in New York state court and served a subpoena on The Journal News, a daily newspaper distributed in New York and Southern Connecticut...
- 06/30/2008 - 3:09pm - 0 comments

New York v. The Journal News

Date: 04/14/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Subpoena Enforced
Type: Subpoena
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Website
On April 14, 2008, the Rockland County District Attorney's Office issued a grand jury subpoena to The Journal News, a daily newspaper distributed in New York and Southern Connecticut that operates LoHud.com, a website providing an...
- 06/30/2008 - 2:46pm - 0 comments

MyNutritionStore.com v. Forte

Date: 06/18/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: North Carolina
Publication: Forum
On June 18, 2008, a lawyer for Mynutritionstore.com, a provider of "science based Nutraceuticals" and "turnkey Internet business opportunit[ies]," sent an email to Julia Forte in which he threatened to sue her over user comments on the website...
- 06/27/2008 - 3:49pm - 0 comments

AnswerThink Consulting Group v. Hackett

Date: 03/30/2000
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Florida
Publication: Forum
In March 2000, AnswerThink, a business and technology consulting firm, fired Gregory P. Hackett for allegedly criticizing the company on a Yahoo! forum and sued him for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and loyalty, and defamation...
- 06/26/2008 - 2:24pm - 0 comments

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