Blogger Subpoenaed For Comments Posted to his Blog

Prominent Blogger, Jeremy Shoemaker of ShoeMoney just posted that he now finds himself subpoenaed in regards to a lawsuit over comments posted on his blog.

While this may be the first case of a blogger being involved in a lawsuit because of something visitors posted to a blog, all sorts of questions have arisen about what’s kosher when it comes to sites hosting reader comments. Two months ago, for instance, Pittsburgh attorney, Todd Hollis, sued DontDateHimGirl.com for allowing anonymous women to post allegedly libelous dirt on his dating tendencies.

Shoemoney commenters also point to Blogcritics.org’s article on Bloggers Beware: Libel and Invasion of Privacy which details some other cases where people who’ve posted something online were held accountable for their actions and Joe Gratz’s post on blog law.

If you’re a blogger or are considering blogging, I strongly encourage you to create a comments policy that details what you will allow on your blog, such as personal attacks and flaming. I also highly recommend you read the free Legal Guide for Bloggers published by the EFF.

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