Legal Threat Demands TechDirt Shuts Down
By Thomas Mennecke
One has to wonder what is going on with libel laws in the UK. Tech Dirt, a very popular online blog and community forum, has received a legal threat from the UK law firm Addlestone Keane. Apparently, a community member published an anti-Semitic post directed towards a Mr. Jeffrey Morris, who then stuck his lawyers on Tech Dirt. Did they ask to remove the offending post? Perhaps the offending thread? Nope - they demanded that the entire site be taken offline. All of it.
From the legal threat, "We have therefore been instructed by our client that unless we receive your written undertaking by 31 August 2010 you will take immediate steps to close down this site, we will be instructed to institute Court proceeding against you and your company without further notice."
http://www.slyck.com/story2034_New_Wank_Plan_Legal_Threat_Demands_TechDirt_Shuts_Down
from the first-test-of-the-SPEECH-Act? dept
Here at Techdirt, unfortunately, we get an average of about one legal threat per month. The threats are almost always frivolous -- and often made in anger without the individual realizing why the threats are frivolous. While some sites take the position that they will publish any and all legal threats, we have always tried to give the threatening party the benefit of the doubt, and to recognize that they made their demands in a moment of excess anger and misunderstanding. As such, we generally explain our position as to why any legal action would be a mistake -- and in nearly every case, we never hear back from the person who threatened us.
However, we have recently received a legal threat that we feel deserves attention and airing for a variety of reasons.
http://techdirt.com/articles/20100825/02002110771.shtm
