Interesting ruling
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columb ... ml?ref=rss
Vancouver man's lawsuit against Yahoo! dismissed
Last Updated: Friday, September 7, 2007 | 3:47 PM PT
CBC News
A lawsuit brought by a Vancouver businessman against U.S. internet giant Yahoo! over what he called derogatory comments made about him in an Internet chat room has been dismissed.
British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Sunni Stromberg-Stein ruled she saw no evidence anyone in B.C. actually read the comments that Wayne Crookes, a former campaign manager for the Green Party of Canada, called offensive.
"Publication is an essential element for an action in defamation. In this case, the pleadings are deficient as there is no pleading alleging the purported defamatory postings were published in British Columbia, that is, communicated to a third person," Stromberg-Stein said in a ruling posted on the court's website on Wednesday.
"I agree with Yahoo! that no tort has been committed in British Columbia and no damages have occurred in British Columbia," she said in her ruling. "As such, there is no basis for this court to assume jurisdiction over Yahoo!. I would dismiss the action as against Yahoo! with costs."
Crookes's lawsuit concerned a Yahoo! Groups website with respect to the GPC-members group, a discussion forum about the Green Party of Canada created on March 27, 2005.
CBC News couldn't reach Crookes for comment Friday, but spokesman Dermod Travis said Crookes will review the court decision before deciding whether he will appeal.
"At the core of these actions is the aspect that what you write, you are responsible for; what you post, you are responsible for," Travis said over the phone from Montreal.
Travis also said Crookes launched a total of five lawsuits, including one involving the publication of a letter in a newspaper in Port Alberni, B.C. that has been settled out of the court.
The lawsuit Stromberg-Stein dismissed involved Coceve, Inc, Myspace, Inc, Yahoo! Inc, and seven individuals, the electronic ruling says.
Dan Burnett, a media lawyer who represented several defendants in this suit, said Stromberg-Stein's ruling is significant in terms of who has the right to sue whom and where.
"The significance of it is that it says a person can't just sue in a jurisdiction like British Columbia because there's a web publication available in B.C. or any other jurisdiction in the world," he said.
Defamation in a web forum
Moderators: sky's the limit, sepia, Sulako, lilfssister, North Shore, I WAS Birddog
Defamation in a web forum
It's better to break ground and head into the wind than to break wind and head into the ground.
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Kelowna Pilot
- Rank 6
- Posts: 481
- Joined: Mon Jul 10, 2006 11:48 am
Trying to sue people for slander/libel often blows up in the persons face, especially if you're a politician or a public figure.
First, you bring even more attention onto what was said.
Anyone here old enough to remember ex BC premier Bill Vanderzalm and the pulling wings off flies cartoon... stuck with him forever...
Second, the statements could very well be true. Sometimes people deserve the pounding they take.
Just because you don't like to hear something, it doesn't mean there's no truth in it.
First, you bring even more attention onto what was said.
Anyone here old enough to remember ex BC premier Bill Vanderzalm and the pulling wings off flies cartoon... stuck with him forever...
Second, the statements could very well be true. Sometimes people deserve the pounding they take.
Just because you don't like to hear something, it doesn't mean there's no truth in it.
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furious george
- Rank 1
- Posts: 45
- Joined: Sat Jun 09, 2007 7:39 pm
- Location: Aboard the Crazy Train
There was no mention of beer nor pussy so don't worry about it. I've got your back brother.istp wrote:What was that article about?
I didn't read it.
-istp
"FLY THE AIRPLANE"!
http://www.youtube.com/hazatude
http://www.youtube.com/hazatude
There once was a crooked man
Who walked a crooked mile
He found a crooked sixpence against a crooked stile
He bought a crooked cat
That caught a crooked mouse
And they all lived together in a little crooked house
Many years ago childrens nursery rhymes were used to cover the names of the guilty in political situations as dissent was often fatal .You could find yourself locked up in the Tower of London or shipped off to the Colonies.
As for me fearing the wrath of any professional political manger .You are right they can do a fella a lot of damage .They are usually lawyers that cannot get any good work from the Courts .So they test the political waters from the back room first .When exposed to the glare of the front room and publicity they usually resort to the courts and some are successful at defending they honour and some just show the world why it is that they do not find much work in the courts .
Who walked a crooked mile
He found a crooked sixpence against a crooked stile
He bought a crooked cat
That caught a crooked mouse
And they all lived together in a little crooked house
Many years ago childrens nursery rhymes were used to cover the names of the guilty in political situations as dissent was often fatal .You could find yourself locked up in the Tower of London or shipped off to the Colonies.
As for me fearing the wrath of any professional political manger .You are right they can do a fella a lot of damage .They are usually lawyers that cannot get any good work from the Courts .So they test the political waters from the back room first .When exposed to the glare of the front room and publicity they usually resort to the courts and some are successful at defending they honour and some just show the world why it is that they do not find much work in the courts .
The law allows anyone to be an idiot, and litigate against you, regardless of how dubious the merits of their suit.
You are forced to spend $$$ to defend the case - otherwise it goes through as a default judgement.
However, you must not only short-term finance your legal costs, which may be tens of thousands of dollars ... regardless of how well you do in court, you will never be completely compensated for your legal costs - at best you can hope for is 70% under our "loser pays" system.
Basically, you get the justice you can afford. Just ask OJ Simpson.
You are forced to spend $$$ to defend the case - otherwise it goes through as a default judgement.
However, you must not only short-term finance your legal costs, which may be tens of thousands of dollars ... regardless of how well you do in court, you will never be completely compensated for your legal costs - at best you can hope for is 70% under our "loser pays" system.
Basically, you get the justice you can afford. Just ask OJ Simpson.
