[IP] New Arizona case involving anonymous Internet speech
Begin forwarded message:
From: Paul Levy <plevy@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: September 27, 2006 8:37:43 PM GMT+02:00
To: dave@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: New Arizona case involving anonymous Internet speech
We have just filed a friend of the court brief (joined by EFF) in an
appellate case in Arizona which appears to be the first time the
right of anonymous Internet speech, and the problem of how to decide
whether to compel the identification of an anonymous Internet user
accused of wrongdoing, will be presented in that state's courts.
The case involves some pretty unusual facts: the Doe defendant is an
anonymous Internet speaker who obtained an email that the married
head of Mobilisa, a software company, had sent from work to his
mistress, and distributed the email to other executives with the
comment that the email reflected poorly on the company. Instead of
the executive himself suing for invasion of privacy, the executive
had the company sue alleging that the email must have been obtained
by hacking into the company's computer system. The company obtained
a subpoena to the emailer's Internet Service Provider from Arizona
Superior Court, and after receiving sworn denials from the executive
and his mistress that they had given the email to anyone else or
authorized access to their personal email accounts, the trial judge
ordered the disclosure of the anonymous emailer's identity. Both the
Doe and the Internet Service Provider appealed.
We argue that, whatever the outcome of the appeal with respect to the
identity at issue, Arizona should follow other states by requiring
evidence of the wrongdoing that is alleged, and by balancing the
interest in obtaining redress for serious wrongs against the right to
remain anonymous unless and until there is good evidence of wrongdoing.
Paul Alan Levy
Public Citizen Litigation Group
1600 - 20th Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20009
(202) 588-1000
http://www.citizen.org/litigation
Robert Yule 9/27/2006 2:21 PM >>>
PUBLIC CITIZEN PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release: Contact: Paul Alan Levy (202) 588-1000
Sept. 27, 2006 Robert Yule (202)
588-7703
Software Company's Attempts to Reveal Identity of Anonymous
E-mailer May Stifle Internet Free Speech
Public Citizen Files Brief to Support Right of Internet Speakers Who
Have Done No Harm to Remain Nameless
WASHINGTON, D.C. - A Washington state software company may not have
the right to reveal the identity of an anonymous e-mailer, according
to a friend of the court brief filed today in an Arizona court of
appeals by Public Citizen, joined by the San Francisco-based
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).
The company Mobilisa sought to discover the identity of an anonymous
e-mailer who distributed to other executives at the company the text
of an e-mail originally sent by Mobilisa's married CEO to his
mistress. The unknown sender used the services of the Arizona-based
Internet service provider Suggestion Box, which enables members of
the public to send e-mails anonymously.
Instead of suing for invasion of privacy, the executive had the
company file suit against "John Does 1-10" in Washington state court
alleging that the e-mail must have been obtained by hacking into the
company's computer system - a violation of federal law. The company
then filed a motion in Arizona Superior Court in Phoenix against
Suggestion Box to gain access to the identity of the e-mailer, giving
sworn denials from the CEO and his mistress that they had given the e-
mail to anyone else or authorized access to their personal e-mail
accounts. Suggestion Box appealed when the trial judge granted
Mobilisa the right to discover the sender's name, even though the
court did not find facts showing that the e-mail was illegally
obtained from Mobilisa's own systems.
In the brief, Public Citizen and EFF urged the court to balance the
interests of plaintiffs who feel they have been subject to wrongful
speech against the important right of Internet speakers who have done
no wrong to maintain their anonymity, while considering whether the
online speakers abused their anonymity to engage in wrongful conduct
online, such as by posting truly defaming or libelous comments. The
organizations argued for an equitable balancing standard for
consideration of such cases and asked the court to determine whether
Mobilisa had made a technically adequate showing of facts to make its
case, but did not take a position on whether this disclosure order
should stand.
"The fundamental rights of free speech do not stop at the Internet
portal," said Paul Alan Levy, the Public Citizen attorney who
authored the brief. "The ability to speak or criticize anonymously
online is an important tool for whistleblowers to expose misconduct
or corruption by powerful companies or public figures. Courts should
strike the right balance to protect online anonymity when it has not
been abused and prevent the threat of lawsuits from having a chilling
effect on this important type of speech."
John Flynn, of the Phoenix law firm of Tiffany & Bosco, was local
counsel on the brief.
To read the brief, visit http://www.citizen.org/documents/
mobilisa_amicus.pdf.
Public Citizen has a strong record of defending the First Amendment
rights of Internet users. To learn more, visit http://www.citizen.org/
litigation/briefs/IntFreeSpch/index.cfm.
###
Public Citizen (www.citizen.org) is a national, nonprofit consumer
advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. The Electronic
Frontier Foundation (www.eff.org) is a San Francisco-based nonprofit
organization that protects civil liberties related to technology and
the Internet.
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