Balough
October 4, 2019
(October 4, 2019) The power of EU members to order removal of internet content extends worldwide, the European Court of Justice found. The ruling came in a case where Facebook was ordered to remove or block content not only from its Ireland-based server, but worldwide. The Facebook page was found by Austrian courts as harmful […]
Balough
May 11, 2016
(May 11, 2016) Illinois office holders have absolute immunity to defame citizens who criticize their official duties, but the reverse is not true. The Seventh Circuit reversed the trial court and granted summary judgment for Cook County Court Clerk Dorothy Brown, who had been sued for defamation and retaliation for filing a complaint against an […]
Balough
June 23, 2015
The Illinois Supreme Court affirmed both the trial court and appellate court that a post stating a candidate “is a Sandusky waiting to be exposed” is defamatory per se because it asserts a fact, not opinion. The case involves a trial court’s order requiring Comcast Cable Communication, LLC to provide the name of a subscriber who […]
Balough
May 14, 2014
A county board candidate is entitled to the name of an anonymous poster who wrote that the candidate “is a Sandusky waiting to be exposed,” an Illinois appellate court ruled. The appellate court affirmed a trial court’s order requiring Comcast Cable Communications, LLC to provide the name of a subscriber who posted the comment as […]
Balough
December 23, 2013
A Chicago television reporter was not defamed when a rival station aired a segment showing the reporter in a halter-top bathing suit at the home of the husband of a missing woman in a highly publicized investigation. A Cook County judge found that the reporter, Amy Jacobson, was a public figure for all purposes because, […]
Balough
December 22, 2013
A manufacturer of high-speed turbo blowers used by waste water treatment plants not only defamed its competitor but also violated the Lanham Act, the Seventh Circuit found. The appellate court found that the PowerPoint presentation by KTurbo, Inc. contained false accusations, the company was warned repeatedly that its accusations were false, the company ignored the […]
Balough
December 16, 2013
A poster who made comments about the son of a former town trustee during an election may remain anonymous because the trustee did not show the posts were defamatory, an Illinois appellate court found. The appellate court reversed a Cook County judge who found that the poster’s identity must be turned over to the trustee’s […]
Balough
December 15, 2013
Google does not have to produce information that might identify the author of an email that criticizes a Jamaican resort because the statements were made on the Internet, which is given less credence than other media, a New York appellate court found. Sandals Resorts International, which operates resorts in Jamaica, filed an action in New […]
Balough
December 15, 2013
An online game player, who admits he became addicted to playing Lineage II, can continue his lawsuit against the game’s creator and distributor for defamation, negligence, gross negligence, and negligent infliction of emotional distress. Craig Smallwood contends that the creator and distributor of the game were negligent in failing to inform players that the game […]
Balough
December 15, 2013
The subjects of defamatory statements cannot force Ripoff.com to remove the posts from the website. A federal judge found that the Communications Decency Act (CDA) limits the ability of an aggrieved party to sue an internet host for defamatory statements posted on its website by third parties. The plaintiffs in the case attempted to circumvent […]
