Interesting Article regarding Malicious messages posted anonymously on the Internet. Companies are successfully unmasking them and taking them to court. An interesting thing about the Oregon legal system is the loser has to pay all the winners costs! Oregon definitely has a no-nonsense approach to lawsuits which I think makes these cases even more landmark!
oregonlive.com
Malicious messengers get no ally in court
Corporations and individuals have sued over antagonistic Web postings, and the courts have helped with identification
Saturday, December 12 1998
By Steve Woodward of The Oregonian staff
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PacifiCorp has unmasked John Doe. Two other Oregon corporations are still looking for him.
And one company's antagonist never bothered to keep his identity secret.
In recent months, four Oregon corporations and two individuals have sued different people, most of them anonymous, who allegedly sent damaging information over the Internet.
Cyberlaw is such an evolving field that cases are watched closely for precedents and as a source of tips for other companies dealing with similar issues. So far, the courts and Internet service providers seem willing to help companies unmask their cyber enemies.
The only case that has been resolved is PacifiCorp's. The Portland-based energy company filed suit in October in U.S. District Court in Portland, seeking $1 million in punitive damages against a John Doe who allegedly misappropriated insider information and posted it on a Yahoo! message board on the World Wide Web.
The lawsuit enabled the company to identify the defendant, said Lois O. Rosenbaum, the lawyer who represented PacifiCorp. The parties have settled the case out of court, she said, declining to discuss details.
The most recent case involves Portland-based Williams Controls Inc., which makes components for heavy vehicles, and its chairman and president, Thomas W. Itin.
They are suing Dan Burda of West Linn, alleging defamation, interference with business, and injurious falsehood in connection with statements he posted on a Yahoo! message board.
Filed last month in Clackamas County Circuit Court, the lawsuit alleges that Burda "has falsely stated that Itin and Williams Controls are engaged in fraud, that Itin is draining Williams Controls, that Itin is a madman," well you get the idea.
Itin and Williams Controls each seek $1 million in damages and an injunction to stop Burda from making "further false and defamatory statements."
In an affidavit, Burda states that he believes all the statements he made are true.
A Williams Controls subsidiary that bought a company Burda owned also has sued him in connection with the sale.
Burda did not try to keep his identity secret. He divulged his name, phone number and e-mail address in his postings and urged Williams Controls' shareholders and employees to contact him.
On Tuesday, Burda is scheduled to appear in court for a hearing on whether to impose a preliminary injunction that would prohibit him from making damaging statements for the duration of the case.
In two other cases, Multnomah County Circuit Judge James R. Ellis has issued rulings that made it easier for the plaintiff companies to gather information needed to track down the identities of John Does.
One of them, Southern Pacific Funding Corp., obtained court orders allowing it to take sworn depositions from representatives of Yahoo Inc., America Online Inc. and FlashNet Communications Inc. Itex Corp., a Portland-based operator of a retail barter exchange, also has permission to take depositions from unspecified individuals or businesses in California and Colorado.
Southern Pacific Funding Corp., a Lake Oswego-based mortgage financier that's liquidating under U.S. Bankruptcy Court supervision, and Itex Corp., operator of a retail barter exchange, both filed suit in September in Multnomah County Circuit Court. Both lawsuits allege that numerous John Does posted "maliciously false and defamatory statements" on Yahoo! message boards.
Despite Southern Pacific's bankruptcy, the Internet lawsuit, which alleges interference with business relations, is proceeding, said M. Max Williams II, an attorney for the plaintiff.
Two other unrelated "John Doe" lawsuits were filed in September in Multnomah County Circuit Court by Portland-area residents who received abusive, threatening e-mail at work from anonymous senders.
In one of those cases, the plaintiff, an employee of a Portland law firm, is seeking phone records from US West and Teleport Internet Services in Portland.
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