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.

Zoeller v. Josef Silny & Associates

Date: 02/13/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Material Removed, Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Florida
Publication: Wiki
Professional golfer Fuzzy Zoeller claimed that someone posted false statements about him on Wikipedia. Zoeller traced the IP address of the unknown author of the statements to a computer at Josef Silny & Associates, a Miami education consulting firm. Zoeller sued the...
- 02/13/2008 - 4:28pm - 0 comments

O'Malley v. Karkhanis (Letter)

Date: 04/18/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Lawsuit Filed
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Website
Kingsborough Community College/City University New York (KCC/CUNY) emeritus professor Sharad Karkhanis allegedly published defamatory statements about Susan O'Malley, a KCC/CUNY English professor and faculty union representative, in his online newsletter, "The Patriot Returns!!" Through her lawyer, O'Malley sent ...
- 02/13/2008 - 3:20pm - 0 comments

Ford Motor Company v. 2600 Enterprises

Date: 04/18/2001
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Injunction Denied
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Michigan
Publication: Website
As an act of "cyber-art," defendants 2600 Enterprises and Eric Corley registered the domain name www.fuckgeneralmotors.com and programmed the associated website so that it would automatically redirect to www.ford.com, Ford Motor Company's official website. Ford sued for trademark...
- 02/13/2008 - 3:13pm - 0 comments

Swartz v. Does

Date: 02/11/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Tennessee
Publication: Blog, Website
In February 2008, Donald and Terry Keller Swartz sued three anonymous defendants for defamation and invasion of privacy in a Tennessee state court. The Swartzes are a prominent couple in Old Hickory, Tennessee, where they buy and restore real estate, manage rental...
- 02/13/2008 - 12:41pm - 0 comments

Jones v. WorldNetDaily

Date: 04/01/2001
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Tennessee
Publication: Broadcast, Website
Tennessee businessman Clark Jones sued WorldNetDaily.com, a socially conservative news and opinion website, and freelance reporters Charles C. Thompson II and Tony Hays for defamation in Tennessee state court, after WorldNetDaily.com published an article written by Thompson and Hays claiming that Jones...
- 02/13/2008 - 9:52am - 0 comments

Difrawi v. Henderson

Date: 11/21/2007
Status: Pending
Disposition: Dismissed (partial)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Florida
Publication: Blog, Website
In November 2007, Internet Solutions Corporation and its President and Director Ayman Difrawi (a.k.a. Alec Difrawi) sued Les Henderson, Daniel Bruce Scalf, Jeremy Scalf, Conrad Longmore, and a number of anonymous defendants for defamation, false light invasion of privacy, and other torts....
- 02/11/2008 - 11:37pm - 1 comments

Boothe v. Brent Hanson

Date: 05/09/2005
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Injunction Issued, Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Texas
Publication: Website
Brent Hanson, who operated a website focused on laser eye surgery called LasikFraud.com, posted allegedly defamatory material about Dr. Boothe, a refractive surgeon, essentially calling Dr. Boothe a quack and accusing him of botching surgeries. After Dr. Boothe sued Hanson, the parties...
- 02/11/2008 - 7:30pm - 0 comments

Colin Farrell v. Gonzales

Date: 01/29/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Material Removed
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Blog
David Gonzales, a freelance writer who blogs on the TheBadandUgly and Read It or Don't, received an email from a "legal representative" for Irish actor Colin Farrell alleging that a post he had written about the actor was defamatory....
- 02/08/2008 - 5:54pm - 0 comments

Commissioner Bob Cranmer v. Voice PAC

Date: 02/03/1999
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Material Removed
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: Pennsylvania
Publication: Website
Voice PAC, a Pennsylvania "good government" political action committee, carried a satirical piece on its website in which it used a photograph of Bob Cranmar, Commissioner of Allegheny County, that it placed alongside the text. Commissioner Cranmer and the...
- 02/08/2008 - 12:02pm - 0 comments

Krinsky v. Doe 6

Date: 01/01/2006
Status: Pending
Disposition: Subpoena Quashed
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: California, Florida
Publication: Forum
Lisa Krinsky, the former president, chief operating officer, and chairman of the board of SFBC International, Inc., a Florida company, sued ten anonymous defendants over comments about her posted to a Yahoo! message board. According to court papers, the anonymous forum posters...
- 02/07/2008 - 2:48pm - 0 comments

Hollo v. Lechuga

Date: 01/18/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: Florida
Publication: Blog
In January 2008, Florida property developer Tibor Hollo and his company Opera Tower, LLC, sued Lucas Lechuga, a 29-year-old Miami realtor, and Lechuga's former employer, EWM Realtors, for defamation. According to the complaint, Lechuga published statements on his blog, "...
- 02/05/2008 - 3:43pm - 0 comments

Church of Scientology v. Gawker

Date: 01/15/2008
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Website
A nine-minute video featuring Tom Cruise excitedly proclaiming the virtues of Scientology was leaked onto the Internet. Gawker, YouTube, and other sites posted the video. The Church of Scientology's lawyers sent out cease-and-desist letters and emails to a range of re-publishers, most...
- 02/05/2008 - 2:26pm - 0 comments

Nam Tai v. Doe

Date: 01/26/2001
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Subpoena Enforced
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: California
Publication: Forum
Nam Tai Electronics, Inc., a Hong Kong-based electronics company, sued 51 "John Doe" defendants in California state court for libel, trade libel, and violations of California's unfair business practices statute.  The lawsuit revolved around negative comments about Nam Tai posted to a...
- 02/03/2008 - 8:20pm - 0 comments

Valdosta State University v. Barnes

Date: 05/07/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Disciplinary Action
Jurisdiction: Georgia
Publication: Social Network
T. Hayden Barnes, a student at Valdosta State University, expressed opposition on environmental grounds to the planned construction of two parking garages on the University campus. His campaign included a cut-and-paste collage that he posted on his FaceBook page...
- 01/31/2008 - 2:17pm - 0 comments

Prince v. Prince Fan Sites

Date: 11/06/2007
Status: Pending
Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: California, China, Netherlands
Publication: Website
Lawyers for the musician formerly known, and now currently known, as Prince have sent cease-and-desist letters and at least one DMCA takedown notice to the three largest Prince fansites, Prince.org, Princefams.com, and Housequake.com, demanding that...
- 01/25/2008 - 2:59pm - 0 comments

Federal Grand Jury v. MySpace

Date: 01/08/2008
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Subpoena Enforced
Type: Subpoena
Jurisdiction: California
Publication: Social Network
The Los Angeles Times reported that a federal grand jury in Los Angeles has begun issuing subpoenas in the Megan Meier case, the Missouri teenager who committed suicide after a "boy" she met on MySpace abruptly turned on her and ended their...
- 01/25/2008 - 10:13am - 0 comments

O'Malley v. Karkhanis

Date: 12/21/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit
Jurisdiction: New York
Publication: Website
Susan O'Malley, a Kingsborough Community College/City University New York (KCC/CUNY) English professor and faculty union representative, sued KCC/CUNY emeritus professor Sharad Karkhanis in December 2007 for defamation and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Karkhanis allegedly published defamatory statements about O'Malley in his...
- 01/25/2008 - 9:35am - 0 comments

Stutz, Artiano, Shinoff & Holtz v. Maura Larkins (letter)

Date: 08/06/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: Lawsuit Filed
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: California
Publication: Website
The law firm of Stutz, Artiano, Shinoff & Holtz (SASH) sent a cease and desist letter to Maura Larkins on August 6, 2007 demanding that she remove allegedly defamatory statements she made about the firm from her website, the ...
- 01/21/2008 - 12:33am - 0 comments

West Lafayette High School v. Casseday

Date: 10/05/2007
Status: Concluded
Disposition: n/a
Type: Disciplinary Action
Jurisdiction: Indiana
Publication: Social Network
West Lafayette High School student Caitlyn Casseday received a one-day in-school suspension on October 5, 2007, for calling assistant principal Ron Shriner an "ass" on Facebook. The criticism was posted in a Facebook group set up to support another...
- 01/18/2008 - 2:41pm - 0 comments

Michael Crook v. BoingBoing

Date: 11/01/2006
Status: Concluded
Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence
Jurisdiction: Canada
Publication: Blog
In November 2006, BoingBoing reported that its Canadian-based ISP received a Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notice from Michael Crook requesting that BoingBoing remove a screengrab of him from a Fox News channel program "Hannity and Colmes"...
- 01/18/2008 - 2:20pm - 0 comments

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