Court Dismisses Libel Claim Against EBay
NEW YORK (AP) — A California court has dismissed a libel claim against eBay Inc. by a shopper who was criticized by a merchant on the auction site – a key ruling that further limits eBay’s responsibility for the actions of its users.
Judge Thomas L. Willhite Jr. of the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles last week granted the company’s request to dismiss the libel claim by Roger M. Grace, who bought merchandise via eBay’s Web site.
Grace received negative “feedback” – a form of commentary that eBay buyers and sellers leave regarding each other after transactions – from Tim Neeley who sells Hollywood memorabilia on the site.
According to the court ruling, Neeley wrote that Grace “should be banned from eBay” and was “dishonest all the way” following Grace’s purchase of several items from Neeley.
Grace sued eBay for liable for publishing Neeley’s negative comments on its Web site. But the court ruled that eBay is immune to such claims under the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which protects providers of “interactive computer services” from liability for the online comments posted by their users.
“We think it’s an important ruling because it affirms the principle that eBay is not responsible for the content of third parties,” said Jay Monahan, eBay’s general counsel.
Grace also alleged in his complaint that eBay allowed California buyers to make purchases without collecting sales tax and that it violated state fictitious name registration laws. The court granted eBay’s request to dismiss both claims.
Grace, the editor-in-chief and general counsel for a Los Angeles company that publishes legal newspapers, said called the ruling “wrong.”
“I don’t think there’s any basis to read the statute the way the court did,” he said.
Neeley couldn’t be reached for comment.
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