November 07, 2009

Recent Threats Added to the CMLP 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.

Smith-Green Community School Corp. v. T.V. & M.K. (minors)

Date: 01/01/2009	Status: Pending	Disposition: Lawsuit Filed
Type: Disciplinary Action	Location: Indiana	Publication: Social Network

High School Principal Austin Couch suspended two female high school sophomores from participating in extracurricular athletics after Couch obtained sexually-suggestive photos that the students took of themselves and posted to MySpace. The students, T.V. and M.K., subsequently filed a class action...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 11/04/2009 - 6:13pm - 0 comments

Straub v. Hair Transplant Network

Date: 07/24/2008	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit	Location: California	Publication: Forum; Website

Dr. Paul Straub filed a defamation lawsuit against Media Visions Inc., the company behind HairTransplantNetwork.com, on the grounds that he was removed from the website's recommended doctors list and that critical comments were posted on the website's forum. HairTransplantNetwork.com operates two affiliate websites,...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 11/04/2009 - 6:04pm - 0 comments

Jones v. Above The Law

Date: 10/27/2009	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit	Location: Florida	Publication: Blog

In October 2009, Donald Marvin Jones, a law professor at the University of Miami School of Law, sued David Lat and David Minkin, editor and publisher of the popular law gossip blog Above the Law (ATL), as well as ATL's parent company,...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 11/04/2009 - 5:55pm - 0 comments

New York v. Burgoyne

Date: 01/01/2009	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Convicted; Subpoena Enforced
Type: Criminal Charge	Location: New York	Publication: Forum

Cindy Burgoyne pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor after posting confidential information about grand jury proceedings on discussion forum on the Times Herald-Record's website, using the pseudonym "Nancy Drew." Burgoyne had served on the grand jury investigating the death of a suspect...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 11/02/2009 - 1:57pm - 0 comments

Intellect Art Media Inc. v. Milewski

Date: 12/15/2008	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Dismissed (partial)
Type: Lawsuit	Location: New York	Publication: Website

On December 15, 2008, Intellect Art Media, Inc., a Massachusetts-based company that operates a college-level summer program called Swiss Finance Academy, sued Mathew Milewski, a student at Fordham University; Xcentric Ventures, LLC, operators of the website RipoffReport.com; and five anonymous...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/30/2009 - 12:33pm - 0 comments

Butler University v. Zimmerman

Date: 01/08/2009	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Material Removed; Subpoena Enforced; Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit	Location: Indiana	Publication: Blog

In January 2009, Butler University filed a "John Doe" defamation lawsuit against the pseudonymous author of the TrueBU blog, who signed his posts "Soodo Nym." The author later was identified as Butler University student Jess Zimmerman. The complaint...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/30/2009 - 11:01am - 0 comments

Platinum Equity v. San Diego Reader

Date: 06/26/2009	Status: Pending	Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence	Location: California	Publication: Print; Website

Platinum Equity, LLC, the parent company of the Union-Tribune newspaper, sent a letter to the San Diego Reader, another local newspaper with a website edition, cautioning them against publishing a story on two lawsuits charging Platinum with workplace sexual harassment....

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/26/2009 - 6:17pm - 0 comments

Washington Redskins v. Steinberg

Date: 10/01/2009	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Material Removed
Type: Correspondence	Location: District of Columbia	Publication: Blog

According to Techdirt, a representative of the Washington Redskins football team requested that The Washington Post remove photos from Dan Steinberg's Post-hosted D.C. Sports Bog because of alleged violation of the Redskins' credentialing policy. Steinberg published a post about...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/26/2009 - 11:42am - 0 comments

Planned Parenthood of Columbia/Willamette, Inc. v. American Coalition of Life Activists

Date: 10/26/1995	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Verdict (plaintiff)
Type: Lawsuit	Location: Oregon	Publication: Print; Website

Planned Parenthood and the other plaintiffs sued the American Coalition of Life Activists (ACLA) and others for alleged violations of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE) and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). Specifically, the plaintiffs objected...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/26/2009 - 10:10am - 0 comments

Miami Herald v. Bill Cooke d.b.a. Random Pixels

Date: 08/20/2009	Status:	Disposition: n/a
Type: Correspondence	Location: Florida	Publication: Blog

On August 20, 2009, counsel for the Miami Herald sent a cease and desist letter to Bill Cooke, the blogger behind Random Pixels, accusing him of copyright infringement. The Herald alleged that Random Pixels was reproducing entire articles and ...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/23/2009 - 10:58am - 0 comments

Dolan v. Cityfile

Date: 07/27/2009	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Retraction Issued
Type: Lawsuit	Location: New York	Publication: Blog

James Dolan, Cablevision Systems Corporation, and Madison Square Garden sued the blog Cityfile: New York, its publisher, and one of its bloggers over a July 2009 post entitled "Jim Dolan to Kill Christmas in July?" The complaint (¶...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/21/2009 - 7:24pm - 0 comments

Advanced Armament Corp. v. Garner

Date: 05/06/2008	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit	Location: Oregon	Publication: Forum

Advanced Armament Corp., a Georgia manufacturer of silencers for firearms, sued Ian Hale Garner in Oregon over statements he posted on Internet chat rooms for gun enthusiasts. Advanced Armament brought suit in federal court in May 2008 seeking damages and injunctive relief...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/21/2009 - 5:47pm - 0 comments

Lauth Group, Inc. v. Grasso

Date: 07/25/2007	Status: Pending	Disposition: n/a
Type: Lawsuit	Location: Indiana	Publication: Other

The plaintiffs, real estate developers the Lauth Group, Inc., Lauth Indiana Resort & Casino, LLC, Robert L. Lauth, Jr. and Greg Gurnik, filed a lawsuit in 2007 over statements made in a June 2007 press release about other litigation between the Lauth...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/21/2009 - 4:50pm - 0 comments

Kerr v. Smith

Date: 09/20/2006	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Injunction Issued; Verdict (plaintiff)
Type: Lawsuit	Location: Massachusetts	Publication: Print; Website

A group of developers sued Gregg B. Smith in Massachusetts state court over his operation of a website and distribution of a newsletter under the name "Save Cape Ann." Smith disputed the ownership of a parcel of land and the developers' right...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/18/2009 - 8:44am - 3 comments

Bennoti, Inc. v. Complaintsboard.com

Date: 03/25/2008	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Lawsuit	Location: New York	Publication: Forum

In March 2008, Bennoti, Inc., an espresso machine marketer and merchandiser, sued consumer review site Complaints Board and its owner, Elizabeth Arden, for defamation of business reputation (trade libel) and unfair competition. In March 2009, the United States District Court for the Southern...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/14/2009 - 4:59pm - 0 comments

Coweta County v. Newnan Times-Herald

Date: 07/20/2009	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Subpoena	Location: Georgia	Publication: Print; Website

During a sex discrimination lawsuit brought against Coweta County, Georgia by former county official Leigh Schlumper, the county subpoenaed Sarah Faye-Campbell, a reporter for The Newnan Times-Herald. According to an article in the Times-Herald, the subpoena asked Faye-Campell "to...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/14/2009 - 3:21pm - 0 comments

Aquino v. Electriciti

Date: 02/18/1997	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Dismissed (total)
Type: Lawsuit	Location: California	Publication: Website

Michael A. Aquino and Lilith Aquino, leaders of the "Temple of Set," sued Electriciti, Inc., an internet service provider, over statements made by one of its subscribers. According to their complaint, an Electriciti subscriber going by the pseudonym...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/14/2009 - 1:03pm - 0 comments

Polo Ralph Lauren v. Boing Boing

Date: 10/02/2009	Status: Pending	Disposition: Material Removed
Type: Correspondence	Location: California; Canada	Publication: Blog

In October 2009, Ralph Lauren sent a DMCA takedown notice to Boing Boing's webhost, Priority Colo, alleging that Boing Boing's posting of a Ralph Lauren advertisement violated its copyright. The Ralph Lauren advertisement featured a...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/14/2009 - 12:23pm - 0 comments

RSA v. Scott Jarkoff

Date: 07/19/2009	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Withdrawn
Type: Correspondence	Location: Japan	Publication: Blog

After Jarkoff posted an entry about the security risks he sees with the login mechanism of the Navy Federal Credit Union (NFCU) website on his blog, TechMiso, he received an e-mail from the RSA Anti Fraud Command Centre. RSA Security...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/09/2009 - 9:55am - 0 comments

Video Professor, Inc. v. Montgomery

Date: 02/26/2009	Status: Concluded	Disposition: Settled (total)
Type: Lawsuit	Location: Colorado	Publication: Website

On February 26, 2009, Video Professor filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado against Cameron Montgomery, the owner of a website that labels itself "the Internet's ONLY Certified Review AuthorityTM for work at home opportunities" at...

Legal Threat - CMLP Staff - 10/08/2009 - 6:45pm - 0 comments

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Recent Threats Added to the CMLP Database

Smith-Green Community School Corp. v. T.V. & M.K. (minors)

Straub v. Hair Transplant Network

Jones v. Above The Law

New York v. Burgoyne

Intellect Art Media Inc. v. Milewski

Butler University v. Zimmerman

Platinum Equity v. San Diego Reader

Washington Redskins v. Steinberg

Planned Parenthood of Columbia/Willamette, Inc. v. American Coalition of Life Activists

Miami Herald v. Bill Cooke d.b.a. Random Pixels

Dolan v. Cityfile

Advanced Armament Corp. v. Garner

Lauth Group, Inc. v. Grasso

Kerr v. Smith

Bennoti, Inc. v. Complaintsboard.com

Coweta County v. Newnan Times-Herald

Aquino v. Electriciti

Polo Ralph Lauren v. Boing Boing

RSA v. Scott Jarkoff

Video Professor, Inc. v. Montgomery

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Recent Threats Added to the CMLP Database

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Recent Lawsuit Threats

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