Sunday, April 02, 2006
Anonymity won't keep you out of courtThe Sunday Times today reports that Dundalk weblog the El Paso Times will be shut down next week after it was served with what it describes as "very serious legal documents". The paper reports that remarks made on the site about local singer Cathy Maguire may be the reason behind the legal threat and closure.
Today's Sunday Times piece rightly draws attention to the recent prosecution of Tracy Williams in the UK, who posted anonymous libellous comments about a UKIP candidate in a chat room. Williams was forced to pay £10,000 damages to Michael Keith Smith and was subject to a restraining order, preventing her from making further comments about him. The interesting thing about the case was that Smith was able to prosecute despite Williams' anonymity.
Also of possible relevance is that the Irish Recorded Music Association has been going to the High Court and getting court orders obliging ISPs to release the names and addresses of people whom it believes to have illegally uploaded copyrighted music on file sharing services. Digital Rights Ireland has expressed some concerns about the manner in which these cases are being pursued.
The El Paso Times isn't the first Irish blog to be threatened with legal action. The Sunday Times notes Gavin Sheridan's run in with author John Gray. Of more interest perhaps was the more recent case of an Irish blogger who got a cease and desist letter from a Dublin law firm. He was forced to pull the posts in question, not because he felt he was guilty of libel, but rather that he couldn't afford to go to court.
Libel is an ongoing concern for bloggers. Knowing the law and staying within its bounds is a good place to start, and Digital Rights Ireland has a pamphlet on Irish libel laws. However, that's not the only issue, since even if you believe you're in the right, will you be able to afford a defence in court? There's also the issue of comments, which we've raised here before, and whether you could be held liable for comments someone leaves on your weblog. The Williams case is interesting in this regard, since the person who left the comments rather than the person who hosted them was prosecuted.
The message coming out of all of this is important. Anonymity won't protect you. If someone wants to sue you, they can track you down.
UPDATE: More from Adam Maguire and Damien Mulley.
MORE: A long post from Running With Bulls, the blogger who was on the receiving end of a threatened legal action.
AND MORE: The El Paso Times says its take down notice was an April Fool.
UPDATE: Lots more from Damien (here and here) and Running with Bulls, both of whom point out the Sunday Times was working on the story before the April Fool post.
Categories: Ireland, Law, Blogging
posted by Dick O'Brien at 9:42 AM | link |
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