Out-Law News

Time of posting is critical in web libel, says US appeals court


If suing for libel, you must do so within a limited time from the alleged libel taking place. The New York Court of Appeals yesterday ruled that for internet libel, the clock starts ticking when the page is first posted on-line, not when the web site was last updated.

In doing so, the court rejected the claim of Geoge Firth, former Director of Law Enforcement for the Department of Environmental Conservation.

At a press conference in December 1996, the State Education Department posted on its Government Locator web site a report which was critical of Firth.

The decision is available as an 11-page PDF

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