Status: Dismissed with prejudice, Doe v. Cahill, 884 A.2d 451 (
After viewing negative comments posted by an anonymous commenter on the Smyrna/Clayton Issues Blog, City Councilman Patrick Cahill filed a John Doe lawsuit and obtained a court order to compel Comcast to identify the poster. On appeal the Delaware Supreme Court reversed a trial court decision that used a good faith standard to deny Doe’s request for an emergency protection order. In dismissing the case with prejudice, the Supreme Court held that before an anonymous commenter could be identified the plaintiff had to provide evidence to support each element of his claim to an extent that created triable issues of fact. This case was the first time a state’s high court had addressed the issue of the rights of an anonymous blog commenter.
Links and Court Documents:
http://www.groklaw.net/articlebasic.php?story=20051007151046741
http://www.citmedialaw.org/threats/cahill-v-doe
Appellant Brief: http://www.cyberslapp.org/documents/CahillvDoeAppBriefasfiled.pdf
Amicus Brief: http://www.scribd.com/doc/275487/00882doe-v-cahill-amicus
Order dismissing case: http://courts.delaware.gov/opinions/(idavx455jyc4ibyb1g20bb45)/download.aspx?ID=67130
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