Hold That Blog

At Crooks and Liars, the following report

The California Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in San Francisco Tuesday [September 5] on whether someone who posts a defamatory comment by another person on the Internet can be sued for libel.

Two civil liberties groups say the court’s eventual ruling, due in three months, could have far-reaching implications for free speech on the Internet.

While the case before the court concerns individuals-a Canadian doctor seeking to sue a women’s health activist for posting a third person’s comment about him-the court’s ruling could also determine whether Internet service providers can be held liable when they knowingly allow defamatory remarks to be posted.

While the Court has agreed to hear this case on the very narrow, specific issue (whether the libelous statement is factually true is considered tangential to the issue before the Court), this could have an absolutely chilling effect on bloggers–to be held liable for libel for reposting a third party’s words–which is why the EFF, AOL, EBay and Amazon have submitted amicus briefs, defending the right of Internet service providers.

The Court’s decision should be handed down within 90 days.